


Love Like Fools

by standardusername



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Friends With Benefits, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Pining, pretend relationship au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-08-25
Packaged: 2019-02-27 09:26:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 68,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13245327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/standardusername/pseuds/standardusername
Summary: At a Christmas eve party, Carmilla tells her mother she is dating Laura, this isn't true. Laura agrees to pretend she is dating Carmilla for next 5 months.Another fake/pretend relationship AU





	1. The Good News

Laura scratched at the label on her beer bottle as she waited for her friends to join her, with a sigh she downed the rest of the contents. Laura was sat in her usual booth at the bar that she and her friends would often frequent, McGee’s Pub, which also happened to be the closest bar from her apartment, just on the corner of the street she lived on.

Laura found comfort in the familiarity of the worn red booths, the stained and scarred brown tables. The same dusty framed photographs that filled the walls and the old jukebox that sat in the corner. She’d spent many a memorable night sat in this very booth with her friends and as Laura fiddled with her now empty bottle, she wondered just how many more there might be.

She did not notice Carmilla until she sat in the booth right beside her.

“ _Hi_ , oh thanks, Carm,” Laura smiled at Carmilla as she handed her a new beer and scooted along the seat to allow more room for her, Carmilla moved closer still, not appearing to want the space. 

Carmilla Karnstein, Laura had only known her for about a year, her best friend and roommate, Perry, had started dating Carmilla’s best friend, LaFontaine and so, Carmilla became a part of their little group. Laura had some mixed feelings when it came to Carmilla, she was quite possibly the perfect woman, she was beautiful, clever, funny, annoying in a way that Laura found she quite enjoyed but there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.

Laura remembered Perry dragging her away from the booth to the bar on the night Carmilla had first been introduced to the group and pleasantly requesting that she not get involved with Carmilla as to not jeopardies Perry and LaFontaine’s new relationship. Not that Laura would have, she was not only completely out of Carmilla’s league but apart from a little flirting here and there, Carmilla had not once shown any interest in her, every and any other girl in the vicinity _but_ her. Laura was happy about this, she would never sleep with Carmilla. That would just be… she tried not to think about that. 

Laura had never seen Carmilla Karnstein with the same woman twice and she left the bar with a different one most nights. Laura didn’t wonder how she managed this, Carmilla seemed to mesmerize women in seconds.

“Hey, Cupcake,” Carmilla gave her a perfect smile, as she removed her jacket and scarf, Laura tried her best not to let her eyes wander to Carmilla’s collar bones and thin black top. Carmilla rested her arm along the back of the booth behind Laura casually, just so Laura was aware of Carmilla’s arm touching her. “Are you okay? You look a little… down,” she asked, her fingers brushing the top of Laura’s shoulder momentarily.

“Me? Oh, I’m fine, just tired,” Laura said, taking a sip from her new beer.

“Work?” Carmilla asked, she stared at Laura as if the conversation was the most interesting thing she’d hear all day. Her stare made Laura all agitated and she ran a hand through her hair, something she always did she when she was feeling nervous.

“Yeah, the usual,” Laura shrugged and reverted her eyes to the table quickly.

Laura was an anchor for a local news station, _Silas News One_ , Laura was on at 5am most mornings. She was almost certain not a soul in the city actually tuned in but it was work and she hoped it might further her career, bigger and better things just around the corner, she kept telling herself. 

“What about you, Carm, how was your day?” Laura asked, feeling her face flush as she tried once more to hold eye contact with Carmilla.

Laura knew that Carmilla did not have a standard 9 to 5 job, in fact she barely worked. She was definitely something of an enigma to most people, including Laura. She did however know that Carmilla’s mom was super rich and owned some extravagant companies or websites or something. She’d never found the courage to ask Carmilla to many personal questions.

Carmilla gave a small shrug, “I spent the day with my brother, Will, helping him establish his new winter clothing line.”

Laura nodded though she was clueless, “What clothing line might that be?” she asked awkwardly.

Carmilla raised an eyebrow at her, almost surprised she didn’t already know, “ _Luce_. You’ve heard of _Luce,_ right?”

She had. “Oh, _wow_ , that’s _your brothers_ company?” Laura sat back in the booth giving Carmilla a look of disbelief, feeling Carmilla’s hand grazing her shoulder again, she abruptly sat up.

Carmilla nodded and sipped from her bottle absentmindedly as her eyes began to wander, scanning the crowd gathering at the bar as it began to get busier.

“Carm…” Laura tried to catch Carmilla’s attention, “Carm?”

“Hmm?” She replied as she continued to stare across the bar distractedly.

“ _Carm_?”  Laura followed her gaze, “Who are you looking at?”

 Carmilla glanced at her and then pointed with her bottle, “The blonde.”

There was a tall, pretty blonde sat on a stool at the bar, twirling a piece of her long hair, she was sipping from a fruity looking cocktail and looked to be waiting for someone.

“Oh, she’s very attractive… you should probably go talk to her,” Laura said, trying her best to sound unaffected, she started to pick at the label on her bottle again.

“Cupcake, if I was interested I’d already be over there… that’s not it though… I _think_ I might have already slept with her,” Carmilla looked thoughtful, “What was her name? Janet?... Jane?” She shook her head, stumped.

“You’re a little nauseating, did you know that?” Laura shook her head with a giggle, feeling her confidence growing as she relaxed in Carmilla’s presence. 

“You’re just jealous,” Carmilla sat back in the booth, taking a gulp of her beer and giving Laura another perfect smile.

Laura scoffed, “Jealous?... Why would I be jealous of _her_? I mean, I don’t think that-”

“I was talking about _me_ … not her,” Carmilla interrupted with a smirk.

“Oh… jealous of _you_ , of course,” Laura blushed, standing suddenly. “Bathroom…” she whispered, making her way in that direction as quickly as possible, not looking back at the booth or Carmilla.

She leaned back against the cubicle door, lightly banging her head against it in frustration, what was wrong with her? Why was she like this? Laura considered trying to sneak out of the bar when Carmilla was distracted or could she fit through the window in the bathroom?

After Laura had managed to compose herself enough to return to the booth, she was met with Perry and LaFontaine. Perry had been Laura’s best friend since college and they had been roommates since they moved in together after graduation.

“Hi guys,” Laura took her seat next to Carmilla, who was scanning the bar once more.

“Hey, L,” LaFontaine began, pushing back their red hair which had fallen on to their brow, “So, my friend from work, Shelly… she’s single again…” They smiled in delight and then took a sip of their beer.

“Shelly?” Was she meant to know who that was? 

Perry spoke up, “You remember Shelly, you met her at the Halloween party on the roof that one time, she was dressed as Wonder Woman-”

 LaFontaine interrupted with an air of excitement, “You really liked each other but she took a work assignment and moved away for a little while but… she’s back… _and_ she’s single.”

Laura nodded, ah, she remembered her now.

“Let me give you her number,” LaFontaine started to search their many pockets for their phone.

“What does this _Shelly_ look like?” Carmilla’s gaze landed on Perry and LaF, she was suddenly interested.

 “A little taller than Laura, dark brown hair, nose piercing, she has one of those swirly eight symbols tattooed on her wrist, she was dressed as Wonder Woman at the Halloween party.” Perry explained.

“Yeaahhhh, I slept with her,” Carmilla nodded, waving at someone across the bar as she spoke.

“ _What?_ ” The other three spoke in unison, Carmilla looked around at them in amusement.

“Definitely slept with her,” Carmilla shrugged.

Laura frowned and rolled her eyes, “Forget it, LaF, I’m no longer interested.”

LaFontaine chuckled and Perry released a long sigh of disappointment. 

“Is there _anyone_ you haven’t slept with?” Laura teased, elbowing Carmilla in the ribs.

“Yes, I haven’t slept with anyone at this table,” Carmilla smiled, giving the table a tap and taking a sip of her drink.

“That’s true,” LaF nodded. 

Laura felt her face heat up and she wasn’t even sure why, she grabbed her drink and took a few gulps.

“Laura, I’m concerned…” Perry began.

Laura wanted to roll her eyes, she let her head drop back onto the chair.

“It’s just… you haven’t dated anyone for a long time and lately you’ve been rather-”

“I dated Anna,” Laura interrupted, she had been expecting this.

“L, that was seven months ago…” LaFontaine said, giving Laura a grieving sort of look.

“Guys, I’m fine, really. I don’t need your help and I don’t need you feeling sorry for me either. I’m very happy.” Laura said with a nod of confidence.

So, she hadn’t dated in a while, it didn’t mean anything, she was busy with work, she hadn’t met anyone she was interested in, there was a plethora of reasons why… seven months isn’t that long, is it?

Laura took a few more gulps of her beer as silence fell over the table.

“I hear you guys,” Carmilla suddenly spoke up, nodding confidently, “You want me to help Laura find a girl tonight.”

Laura scoffed, almost choking on her beer, “Carm, that isn’t necessary, I’m not looking for a one night stand.” 

“Why?” Carmilla turned to look at her, “Cupcake, have a little fun, you’re young, you are beautiful, you work for _Silas News One_ , that makes you like a local celebrity. Just think of all the women who’d be into that.”

Laura laughed, “Celebrity… _really?_ Okay, have any of you ever actually watched my show?” She peered around at them eagerly.

Carmilla’s brow furrowed in concentration, Perry looked as though she had just been given devastating news and LaFontaine shrugged and took a sip of their beer.

“Sorry, L, it’s on a little early for me to catch,” LaF said unashamedly.

“Laura, dear, I have been meaning to watch, I honestly have but-”

Carmilla interrupted, looking at Laura, “It doesn’t matter that nobody watches the damn show, you’re a news anchor, you’re on tv, that has to count for something, right?" 

“Have you watched it?” Laura asked, staring at Carmilla.

“I- I… don’t watch tv,” Carmilla stood suddenly, looking around at the three of them, “My round, same again?”

“Your round? Carm you bought-” But Carmilla had already disappeared into the crowds at the bar.

LaF wrapped their arm around Perry’s waist and smiled across the booth at Laura, “For someone who claims they don’t watch tv, Carmilla has one hell of a large tv in her apartment, I swear it’s like 120 inches…”

“I’ve seen it,” Laura nodded.

“You should listen to Carm, go have some fun, you have nothing to lose, L” LaF encouraged.

“That’s easy for you say, you’re in a happy relationship, put yourself in my shoes,” Laura said, finishing her beer.

“Danny not here yet?” The three of them looked toward Wilson Kirsch as he grabbed a chair and pulled it up to the table.

“No, we haven’t seen Danny,” Laura said, happy for the distraction, “How are you, Kirsch?" 

The fifth and sixth members of their little group were Kirsch and Danny, they were Laura and Perry’s old friends from college. Danny and Laura had dated for a short while in college but both had agreed they were much better as friends.

“I’m great, L, the night is young, the hotties in here are looking extra hot and-”

Laura stopped listening, her eyes flitting around the room, eventually landing on Carmilla as she leaned on the bar, she looked to be deep in conversation with an attractive brunette, Laura briefly wondered whether Carmilla would be returning to the booth this evening when she suddenly picked up a pitcher and carried it over to their booth, taking her seat next to Laura again.

“Thought you’d found tonight’s distraction…” Laura spoke quietly, nodding toward the bar.

“Got her number,” Carmilla smiled, handing Laura a glass. 

An hour and a half and 3 more beers later, Laura was starting to feel it and Danny Lawrence appeared in the bar.

“Hi!” She waved at the group, Kirsch moved his chair along making room for Danny to join the table, she glanced around the bar in search of a spare chair, removing her gloves and hat.

“Danny, don’t bother, me and Perry were heading out now anyway,” LaF said, moving to stand, draining the last of their beer.

“Oh, what? It’s only 9.30. Guys, I just got here,” Danny said with an edge of disappointment, glancing down at her watch.

Perry gave Danny’s arm a sympathetic squeeze as she stood, “Sorry Danny, LaFontaine and I have an early start tomorrow. We’ll see you at the weekend?”

“Carmilla’s mom’s Christmas eve thing, right?” Danny asked.

Perry nodded and Danny smiled, moving aside to allow Perry and LaF to leave the booth and dropping into their vacated seat.

Carmilla’s mom apparently held a prestigious Christmas eve party every year, Carmilla had invited them all. 

“How you doing, Danny?” Kirsch said, taking a seat in the booth next to her.

Laura smiled at Danny by way of a greeting, Carmilla’s attention was waning again, her eyes scanning the bar.

Danny and Carmilla had never quite gotten along, they were friends but Laura was almost certain they wouldn’t be sociable outside of their group. Danny had been the only member of their group who hadn’t been so happy when Carmilla joined them.

Laura stood, “Next round on me? Same again…?”

She left the booth, making her way over the bar feeling pleasantly tipsy. 

“Another pitcher of beer please, Mike,” Laura said giving the bartender a smile.

Laura hummed to herself as she waited, looking up when she could smell a familiar perfume.

“Carm, I’m getting this round,” Laura said, giving a confused look.

“I know, Cutie, I’m just here to give you a hand, you’re looking a little unsteady,” Carmilla smirked.

“ _Hey, I’m fine_ ,” Laura frowned and Carmilla chuckled.

“I’m fine, Carmilla,” Laura repeated. “Why are you laughing?”

“That little face you make when you’re angry is hilarious, Buttercup.” Carmilla gave a little shrug, grabbing the pitcher before Laura had the chance and heading back to the table.

Laura frowned down at the bar for a few seconds before following.

“Laura, don’t you have to be up at like 4am for work?” Kirsch asked when Laura drained her next beer.

“No, she doesn’t work Fridays,” Carmilla responded.

“What? How did you know that?” Laura asked, surprised. 

Carmilla gave her head a little shake, “I just know,” She replied with a shrug.

“Well, that is true,” Laura slurred at Kirsch and Danny, “I’m here for the night!” she exclaimed excitedly.

Kirsch chuckled and gave Laura a fist bump.

“I think we need music,” Laura said, standing quickly and heading for the jukebox.

She leaned over the jukebox, trying to focus on the tracks, where was Cher when you needed her? Was she doing something wrong? She couldn’t get the darn thing to work properly. She turned to look back across the room to signal for help. 

Carmilla was at the bar, speaking with another attractive woman, she watched with a frown as Carmilla’s hand grazed down the woman’s arm to her waist and pulled her closer. Laura took a deep breath and willed herself to look away, just as Carmilla’s eyes met hers from across the bar. She turned quickly back to the jukebox, pressing buttons at random.

When music began to play, she returned to the booth, not daring to look in the direction of the bar, sliding back into her seat and poured herself another beer. 

“I’m heading home,” Danny said, tapping Laura’s arm and pulling on her coat.

“ _What_? Danny, stay a little longer… it’s not even-” Laura frowned.

Danny gave her a smile, “I wish I could, Laura, I have to work tomorrow. Have great time tonight, don’t do anything Kirsch would do, okay?” 

Kirsch looked up at the mention of his name and Danny punched him in the arm as she left the booth.

Laura stood, pulling Danny into a hug. “See ya, Danny.”

As she watched Danny leave, Laura’s eyes were drawn to the bar before she could stop herself, Carmilla was looking very cozy with her new friend. She sat heavily in her seat, grabbing up her beer. 

Just her and Kirsch left at the table.

“Laura, are you okay?” Kirsch asked watching her closely.

“Yeah… it’s just… I’m not sure, Kirsch, everyone’s leaving and…” Laura sighed and shook her head. “Guess I just wanted _more_ from tonight.”

She gulped her drink, her fingers running over the old grooves in the wooden table.

“Laura, there’ll be other nights, what’s so special about this one?” Kirsch asked, leaning closer.

Laura chewed her lip, she’d never admit it to anyone but she knew what it was. LaFontaine had been right, she hadn’t dated in months and if she was honest with herself she didn’t know why. She wasn’t exactly happy with her job, she missed her dad, she felt as though they hadn’t had a memorable night in months. 

“I don’t know, Kirsch, I’m just a little _bored_ of my life at the moment.” Laura gave a shrug.

Kirsch was silent for a moment, thinking.

“If every night was a night worth remembering then what makes any night special? I’ll tell you one thing, drinking on your own in McGee’s isn’t going to make for a legendary night, L,” Kirsch gave her a compassionate look.

“You’re not going to leave me, are you?” Laura frowned.

Kirsch looked down at his glass and then back up at Laura with a guilty expression.

“It’s a Thursday night, what did you expect? We’re not college kids anymore.” Kirsch looked at her for a moment and then downed the rest of his drink, tapping his glass on the table when he was done. He smiled at Laura as he pulled on his coat, “Come on, I’ll make sure you get home,” he nodded toward the exit.

Laura shook her head, “No, it’s okay, I think I’ll… stay for a little while longer, finish my drink.” She stared down at her beer.

“On your own?” Kirsch stood from the booth.

“I’m not- Carm is st-” Laura looked quickly over the bar, Carmilla wasn't there. “It’s fine, Kirsch, go… I’ll just finish this.”

Alone again, Laura checked the time on her phone, 12.30, earlier than she thought.

She sipped her drink and then rubbed at her eye, she had to admit to herself she was pretty wasted right now. This was a new low, drinking in the bar on her own in the middle of the night?

“Come on, Cupcake, let’s get you home." 

Laura looked up, Carmilla was leaning over the table toward her with an eyebrow raised.

“Carm…” Laura whispered, she forgot how to talk, she stared at her.

“Wha- Carm, you- the- what happened to that gorgeous woman at the bar?” Laura slurred, craning her neck around Carmilla in search of her.

Carmilla smiled, “I’ll come back for her.”

Laura stood quickly, wobbly on her feet. “ _No_ , I’m literally up the street.”

She tried to pull on her coat… she was sure this coat had arm holes earlier…

“Exactly, I can get you up to your apartment and be back again in no time, come on,” Carmilla grabbed Laura’s coat and helped her pull it on.

“Are you okay?” Carmilla wrapped an arm around her waist, Laura tried to refrain from leaning into her, god, she smelt good.

They walked out together, “I’m good, thanks Carm, you really didn’t have to do this.” Laura murmured.

“Yes, I did,” Carmilla tightened her grip when they reached the street, “Are you sure you’re okay, Cutie? Kirsch was… worried about you.”

“Kirsch.” Laura nodded, of course. “…Do you ever- Carm… ” She sighed and stopped, turning to face Carmilla.

“Carm, it’s stupid I know but I guess I’m just a little… _bored_ … of my life right now,” Laura shrugged, “Do you ever feel like that? Of course, you don’t, you’re… _you_.”

  Laura staggered on up the street, Carmilla caught up quickly, ‘’I know exactly how you feel-” she wrapped her arm back around Laura’s waist as they walked. “Cupcake, everyone feels like this sometimes… it won’t last… you have an amazing life, with amazing friends,” she pointed at herself smugly and Laura giggled, rolling her eyes. “Soon you’ll wonder why you ever felt like this at all.”

“Carm, you are honestly the perfect woman you know that, right?” Laura stared up at her, they slowed to a stop.

“You may have mentioned once or twice before,” Carmilla smiled and Laura blushed, chewing her lip. Carmilla pushed a piece of Laura’s hair behind her ear, her hand coming to rest on her shoulder.

They stared at each other, Laura knew she was far too drunk to be in a situation like this but somehow, she just couldn’t bring herself to pull away.

Carmilla released a breath, “Laura…”

 “ _Carm_ … it’s starting to snow!” Laura laughed, watching the snow  as it began to land on Carmilla’s dark hair. 

The spell broken, Carmilla looked up and Laura took a small step back, snow was starting to come down heavily.

“Come on, let’s get inside,” Carmilla urged, starting up the steps that lead to the Laura’s apartment building.

Laura hadn’t realized they had even made it to her building.

They reached the second floor with Laura singing, White Christmas and Carmilla shushing her with a smile as they passed by her neighbor’s quiet apartments. She waited as Laura slowly opened her apartment door.

A moment of silence, was Carmilla going to come in? Laura sort of hoped not, she was worried about doing something embarrassing in her inebriated state.

“Thank you, Carmilla, you didn’t need to do any of this,” Laura said, lingering in the doorway.

“Anytime. You still coming on Sunday?” Carmilla asked leaning on the door frame with her hands in her pockets.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Laura smiled.

Carmilla nodded, another moment of silence.

“You’d better get back to your girl,” Laura whispered.

“Right,” Carmilla nodded slowly, they stared at each other for a moment longer, “Goodnight, Cupcake.”

Laura’s smile dropped as she watched Carmilla disappear down the hallway and she let the door fall closed with a sigh. 

*

 LaF: _In the bar_

Laura typed a quick reply.

Laura: _Be there in 5_

Laura turned back to the mirror, flattening down her dark blue dress uncertain, worrying for a moment that she should have chosen something more Christmassy. She readjusted her hair and stared at her reflection for a moment longer and with a confident nod, Laura grabbed up her jacket and headed for her door, ready for Carmilla’s mothers Christmas eve party.

When Laura entered the bar, LaF, Perry and Danny were sat in the usual booth.

“ _You_ look stunning tonight, Laura,” Danny said with a smile as Laura sat in the booth beside her, pouring herself a beer from the pitcher.

“Thank you, Danny, you look beautiful as always,” Laura blushed and Danny gave her hand a tap in thanks.

“Hello?” LaF pointed at themselves and straightened their bowtie.

“As do you LaF and of course, Perry when do you _not_ look perfect, am I right?” Laura laughed.

LaF gave Laura a high five. 

“So, LaF, you’ve been to one of Carmilla’s mom’s get-togethers before, what’s it like?” Laura asked, sipping her beer.

They waved their hand in an unbothered sort of way, “It was just a load of boring people I didn’t know, Carmilla and her mom, it was very… elaborate and dull…” 

Laura frowned, “Great, just what I expected.”

“No, come on, we’ll all be there, it’ll be fun I’m sure,” Danny reasoned. 

Perry looked down at her phone, “Cab’s here.” 

*

 Carmilla’s mother’s apartment was the most luxurious Laura had ever seen, Carmilla’s lavish apartment paled in comparison to this. The apartments huge windows looked down over the city and the living room was bigger than Laura’s entire home, a table in the room was bigger than her bedroom. The apartment was decorated beautifully with white and gold wreaths and Christmas trees.

Laura had never seen so many bottles of champagne in her life, they each grabbed a flute from a passing waiter. Laura grimaced, she hated the taste of champagne.

She’d never felt so out of place, Laura had never been to an occasion like this, as expected she didn’t recognize a single person save for her friends. She glanced at Danny and then LaF, they were both wearing similar expressions.

Everything in the apartment looked ludicrously expensive, vases, lamps, ornaments and trinkets, Laura was almost afraid to move or touch anything for fear she may damage something. The walls opposite to the windows were covered in extravagant art, and paintings, it was almost like stepping into an art gallery.

She took another sip of her champagne. 

“That’s Carmilla’s mom,” LaFontaine gestured, pointing to a tall attractive lady with dark hair like Carmilla’s but it up away from her face. Laura smiled to herself, thinking she looked like a young Professor McGonagall. She looked rather stern and Laura gripped the glass in her hand a little tighter.

“Where have you guys _been_?” Carmilla appeared beside them.

“The bar,” LaF replied, finishing their champagne.

Danny laughed, “What are you wearing?”

Carmilla scowled, “Don’t start.” 

Laura was unable to laugh, Laura was unable to react at all, apart from open and close her mouth like a fish. Carmilla was not wearing her usual ripped black jeans or leather pants but a perfectly fitted dark blue pin-striped suit, the jacket was open reveling her white shirt with just the right number of buttons left unfastened. Laura was surprised Carmilla could even fit her hands in her suit pants pockets as they looked just as tight as her skinniest jeans.

“I think you look lovely,” Perry said, frowning in Danny’s direction. 

Laura had to force herself to look away, she could feel her face heating up as she stared.

“It was this or something my mother would have picked, you don’t know how hard it is trying to keep that woman happy,” Carmilla said grumpily, looking over her shoulder cautiously as if she were afraid of being accosted and grabbing a flute of champagne.

Laura kept her mouth shut, she wasn’t sure she’d actually be able to hold a conversation with Carmilla when she looked like this. She always looked great but there was something about her in suit that made Laura a little breathless.

“Carmilla, this apartment is astonishing,” Perry said, gazing around happily. 

Carmilla gave a quick nod, “It certainly is something,” she sipped her champagne.

Laura found her eyes drawn back to Carmilla like a magnet, Carmilla was staring at her, Laura swallowed. LaFontaine began to speak and Carmilla looked away towards them. 

“Is there food? When can we leave?” LaF said, fixing their floppy hair.

“The food is in the other room,” Carmilla gestured to a door across the room.

LaF, Perry and Danny began to walk in that direction, Laura began to follow, a hand on her arm stopped her.

“You’re unusually quiet tonight, Cupcake, is everything okay?” Carmilla whispered.

Laura’s eyes drifted up Carmilla’s body to her face, her mouth had never felt so dry, she took a mouthful of champagne and grimaced at the taste.

“Erm, I-I-” She swallowed, “You look _amazing_ , are you warm? Is it hot in here?” Laura spoke quickly and breathlessly.

Carmilla took the flute from her, placing them both on a large table nearby, “Cupcake?” she gave her a questioning look. “Are you having a panic attack?”

Laura shook her head, “No, just feeling a little overwhelmed, it’s a lot… to take in.”

“I know, how do you think I feel coming these things on my own? I hate it,” Carmilla looked around quickly and then back at Laura, taking a step closer.

“You look ravishing tonight, Cutie,” Carmilla winked, Laura sucked in a deep breath and tried to respond but all that came out was a pained like sound.

“Carmilla, dear, are you going to introduce me to your friend?” Carmilla’s mother was suddenly standing right next to them, looking at Laura with interest.

She towered over Laura in her dark green dress, Laura was feeling greatly intimidated, she moved slightly closer to Carmilla.

“Mom, this is Laura Hollis, she is a news anchor for Silas News, she lives with Perry, LaF’s girlfriend.” Carmilla said confidently, her hand came to rest on Laura’s back as she spoke.

“Ahh, pleasure,” she held out her hand to shake, Laura tried to inconspicuously wipe her sweaty palm on the side of her dress. 

“Lilita, I’m Carmilla’s mother,” she said, shaking Laura’s hand firmly.

“This is a wonderful party, your apartment is incredible,” Laura said, surprised at how confident she suddenly sounded considering Carmilla’s hand was still touching her.

 “Thank you, Miss Hollis, hard work, pays off,” Lilita smiled gently. 

Laura smiled back, she really wasn’t that menacing after all.

“What is it you do?” Laura heard herself asking and then instantly regretted it, shouldn’t she know that already?

Lilita gave a small chuckle and didn’t seem bothered by the question, “Well, too much to go into great detail but my most successful venture would be my dating agency and website, _MatchMake_ r, I’m sure you’ve heard of it. I’m happy to say we currently boast a 90% success rate.” Lilita gave a proud nod.

“Wow,” Laura’s eyebrows raised in genuine surprise. 

“Yes, which is why now is the perfect time to sell the company and move on.” Lilita said placing a hand on Carmilla’s shoulder who looked bored.

“You’re selling?” Laura asked, attentively.

“I will be, just setting my affairs in order first, I stand to make a great deal of money from this endeavor, it’ll be the little things like _Carmilla here_ that will make it a _little_ more difficult.”

“Mom, don’t-” Carmilla frowned, trying to step away from her mother. 

“You see Laura, as I said, my organization claims a 90% success rate and yet my daughter, _my own daughter_ ,” she pointed at herself, “-can’t keep a girlfriend. Do you know how that looks? I’m about to sell my company and my daughter can’t even find a match. She won’t even allow _me_ to help her, I could fine her the perf-

“Mom, for the last time, I’m not going to-” Carmilla raised her voice.

Her mother spoke over her, “I may own the company but I’m not the only one in the public eye, Carmilla has attracted enough attention in the past and she will do again-“

“I have a girlfriend!” Carmilla yelled, those closest to them looked around in alarm at the bizarre statement.

“What?” Carmilla's mother looked just as shocked as Laura felt.

Carmilla had a girlfriend?

“If you would have let me speak,” Carmilla paused and corrected one of the lapels on her jacket, “I could have informed you.” Carmilla gave her mother a tight smile.

Her mother who suddenly looked overjoyed, “You’re serious, Carmilla?”

Carmilla nodded, her eyes flitting to the floor and then back up.

“Well, who? _Who is it_?!” Lilita said ecstatically.

 There was a moment of silence, Carmilla said nothing.

And then she licked at her lower lip and stuttered out a name quietly.

“Laura.” 

“Pardon?” Lilita leaned closer.

Laura frowned in confusion.

Carmilla stepped closer to her, placing her hand on her waist, “Laura,” she said louder.

Carmilla smiled at her, “Laura is my girlfriend.”

“Laura?” Lilita looked down at Laura with a look of happy shock.

 Carmilla gave her waist a squeeze and Laura grasped that she was meant to play along.

 “Um… Yes! Carm and me- We’re… yes,” Laura nodded, blushing intently.

 “This is fantastic news! Carmilla, oh, I’m so glad!” Carmilla’s mother looked to be close to tears as she pulled them both into a hug, Laura stood awkwardly. “You’ve finally decided to settle down!”

 “Mom, it’s not- we’re not- we’ve only been dating for… a few weeks,” Carmilla stammered.

 Laura had no idea what to do, she was tempted to run.

 “Laura,” Lilita looked closely at her, “Please call me Lilita, it really is a pleasure to meet you, it really is, if you have managed to hold Carmilla’s interest you must be one hell of a girl. I’m overjoyed!”

 “Excuse me, excuse me, I’ll be back but I must see to the rest of my guests,” Lilita wiped a tear from her eye as she moved away quickly out of sight. 

“Carm! _What the hell_!” Laura turned to her abruptly.

Carmilla glanced around conscious of being overheard, “Laura, I’m sorry, I was just so _tired_ of her being like this _all the time_ , I honestly did not expect her to react so…” Carmilla shook her head, shoving her hands back into her suit pants.

“So, you and Carm are dating, huh?” LaFontaine emerged from the crowd with a chuckle.

Carmilla rolled her eyes.

“Oh, crap,” Laura was feeling overwhelmed, she stalked away in search of somewhere to be alone. 

*

 Laura shivered as the cold wind blew on the balcony where she tried to hide, regretting having not grabbed her jacket before she came outside. Laura briefly wondered whether this was all just some crazy dream she was having but no… she was definitely awake. How could she go back in there? How can she face Carmilla’s mother, she was so happy and it was all a lie.

 The balcony door opened and Carmilla stepped out, Laura looked at her only briefly before returning her gaze to the city view.

 “I’m sorry?” Carmilla held out a bottle of beer like a peace offering.

 “Where did you get this? I thought it was all champagne,” Laura shivered as she took the bottle.

 “My secret stash, I know how much you hate that stuff,” Carmilla smiled at her, Laura tried not to smile back but when Carmilla slipped her suit jacket off and wrapped around Laura’s shoulders, she returned Carmilla’s smile.

 I’m sorry, Laura, I shouldn’t have lied, I shouldn’t have said your name but it just kind of… happened.”

 “It’s okay,” Laura said after a moment of silence, giving a half shrug. “I mean, you can just tell her you made it up, right?” Laura said turning to look at Carmilla.

 “Cupcake… my mother, she- I can’t- it’s not a good idea, I mean you saw how happy she was,” Carmilla said uneasily.

 Laura frowned, “Carm, I can’t pretend to be your girlfriend forever.”

 Carmilla stood up straight, turning to face her with a perfect brow raised, “Well… not forever… just until my mother sells the company.”

 Laura stared at Carmilla for a moment in consideration, “And how long will that be?”

 Carmilla’s lips twitched momentarily into a smile and Laura knew that she knew she would give in to this silly scheme.

 “Four or five months, give or take,” Carmilla said guiltly, pulling her jacket tighter around Laura’s shoulders as it began to slip.

 Laura stepped away.

 “I have to be your girlfriend for 4 or 5 months?!” Laura yelled, angrily.

 Carmilla looked toward the door and then back at Laura, “Please, Laura it will be easy, really, you won’t even have to do anything-”

 “Carmilla, I’m really not sure that this is a good idea-”

 “I’ll give you cookies…” Carmilla interrupted.

 “I’m interested,” Laura replied quickly, taking a step closer.

 Carmilla laughed, really laughed, in a way Laura had never seen. This made Laura giggle and soon they were both smiling and laughing and shivering together on the balcony.

 “Laura, you’re freezing, come back inside,” Carmilla whispered when they had both calmed down enough to speak.

 “Okay…” Carmilla moved aside to allow Laura inside first, “Wait, so I have to pretend to be your girlfriend now?”

 “Just follow my lead,” Carmilla whispered, ushering Laura inside.

 “Here,” Laura said, slipping Carmilla’s jacket off of her shoulders and handing it back to her.

“Thanks,” Carmilla said, starting to slip it back on.

 “Look at the two of you, why didn’t I see it before?” It was as if Lilita was waiting for them to come back in. She placed a hand on her chest as if seeing the two of them together was too much for her.

 Laura flushed red and tried to step behind Carmilla who quickly pulled Laura to her side.

 “Mother, calm down, we’re just dating, we’re not engaged.” Carmilla said grouchily.

 At the mention of engagement, Lilita actually squealed and covered her mouth, Laura thought she may start crying again.

 “I’m just _so happy_ , Carmilla you’re really maturing, it was silly you know, I wondered if you’d ever settle… but now, I mean all of the women, the sleeping around-“

 “ _Mom_!” Carmilla frowned.

 “Well, it’s true, isn’t it?” Lilita shrugged.

 Carmilla glanced sideways at Laura, “Mom, it’s not that-“

“I know, I know, Carmilla, but it was time,” Her mother gave Carmilla a proud tap on the shoulder.

“You must bring Laura to my new year’s extravaganza down at the town house,” Lilita looked between the two of them.

“Your what?” Laura asked, apprehensively.

“ _Mom_ …” Carmilla shook her head, her eyes darting between her mother and Laura, “Laura probably has her own plans for new year’s, she doesn’t want to come to your-“

“Do you?” Carmilla’s mother unexpectedly turned to Laura.

Laura forgot words, Carmilla was nodding at her with wide eyes.

Laura nodded back and then nodded at Carmilla’s mom, “Yes,” Laura swallowed, she wasn’t sure what was happening, what she was agreeing too, “Yes,” she smiled, “I would love too.”

Lilita brought her hands together as if she were in prayer and then pulled them both into yet another hug, “Fantastic! This will be something special!”

Carmilla mouthed _what_ in Laura’s direction, looking entirely distraught and ran a hand through her hair.

Carmilla’s mom squealed in delight once more and disappeared in the opposite direction.

“What was that?” Carmilla whispered angrily. “I told you to follow my lead!”

“ _I was_ , you said yes, so I said yes!” Laura threw her hands up in the air.

 “Yes, to… you already had plans, _already had plans_!” Carmilla replied, crossly.

 “Cupcake, what have you gotten us into...” Carmilla closed her eyes and gripped the bridge of her nose.

“ _Me?_ What have _I_ gotten us into!? Carmilla, this is all your fault!” Laura spoke rather loudly.

“Laura,” Carmilla looked around cautiously. “Grab the others, let’s get out of here before you start making wedding plans with her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New year, new story
> 
> This isn't the sort of story I would usually write but I love fake relationship AU's and they never seem to go exactly the way I'd like to see so I'm writing my own.
> 
> If you're getting How I Met Your Mother vibes from this, that is because I've just been watching the hell out of it again and some of it seeped into this story.


	2. What makes you, you?

Laura was awoken by the sound of someone moving around in her kitchen, she sat up, thinking fast, who the hell is that?

Burglar? In the kitchen? Hungry burglar?

She hopped out of bed and opened her bedroom door, listening carefully. Someone was making coffee… thirsty burglar?

She wandered down the hall quietly and peeked into the kitchen.

A pair of legs stuck out from behind the fridge door, Carmilla’s legs. Laura couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment when she noticed Carmilla was not wearing her suit today and had settled for her usual black jeans.

 “How did you get in here?” Laura said by way of a greeting, leaning on the kitchen counter and folding her arms. 

Carmilla closed the fridge and looked around at her in mild surprise and then reached into her pocket and pulled out a key.

“You gave me a key four days after we met, don’t you remember? You said it made me an “official member” of the group.” Carmilla replied, making air quotes as she said official member and shaking her head. “You’re entirely too trusting.”

“Oh,” Laura glared at the floor in embarrassment and then cleared her throat. “Why are you here, Carmilla? It’s Christmas day.”

Carmilla poured them both coffee, “Happy Christmas, I need to speak with you, why are _you_ here?”

 “I live here,” Laura said obviously, raising her brows.

“No,” Carmilla chuckled, “Why are you here right now, I mean? Why aren’t you at home for Christmas?”

Carmilla handed Laura a cup, “My dad is on vacation with his new wife, I’m going to spend the day with Perry and LaF." 

Carmilla studied her closely for a quiet moment, just long enough for Laura to feel a twinge of shyness and then she spoke.

“Where is Perry?” She asked.

“She’s not here, she practically lives with LaFontaine now.” Laura said, sipping her coffee.

“Why are you here?” Laura asked again, following Camilla into the living room where she relaxed onto the couch and made herself at home.

“I’m your girlfriend, can I not show up unexpectedly?” Carmilla mused, giving Laura a cute look and sipping her drink.

Laura scoffed, “Carmilla, _no_. You _have_ to tell your mom you made the whole thing up.”

“Laura, come on, it’s not like we’ll even see my mother that often. Once she sells the company we can break up and everything will go back to the way it was.” Carmilla said with a confident nod.

Laura sat on the chair next to the couch, “No.”

Carmilla looked appalled, sitting up quickly, “Cupcake, _please_?”

Laura looked away, trying to gather strength but she already knew she’d say yes, “Carmilla, this is _not_ going to work.”

“Yes, it will,” Carmilla replied with certainty.

“Where are my cookies?” Laura asked trying her best to sound intimidating.

Carmilla laughed silently, “You haven’t done anything to deserve any.” 

It was Laura’s turn to look appalled, her mouth dropping open in outrage

“Okay, I’ll get you the cookies,” Carmilla rolled her eyes.

“Carm, you know what this means right? Your mother said last night, you’re _in_ the public eye, this means you can’t be seen with other girls. You can’t be down at the bar with a different woman every night.”

“Fine,” Carmilla shrugged, “I’ll just keep a low profile for a little while.”

“You said four or five months, Carmilla. You’re going to keep this up for that long?” Laura gave her a disbelieving look.

Carmilla licked her lower lip and then nodded, “Of course. Will you please be my fake girlfriend?”

Laura thought for a moment and then grinned, “Yes, as long as I can do a British accent as your fake girlfriend.”

“Oh my-” Carmilla took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment, “My mother has already met you, you didn’t have a British accent last night,” She gave Laura a tight smile.

“Fine… but you owe me for this,” Laura said, standing up.

“Thank you, Laura,” Carmilla followed suit, standing as well. “I’ll see you at LaF’s.”

 “You’re going?” Laura turned back to face Carmilla as she made for the kitchen.

Carmilla nodded, “Yes, I think I’ll try and escape my mother’s clutches as quickly as I can.”

Laura nodded and Carmilla headed for the door.

“Carm, wait,” Laura said, Carmilla paused as she was pulling on her jacket. 

“When’s your birthday?” Laura asked, coming to stand in front of her.

“You know when my birthday is, we celebrated it…June 20th,” Carmilla replied.

“What’s your favorite color?” Laura asked, quickly.

“Why?” Carmilla asked, confused.

“Because if I’m your girlfriend, wouldn’t I know these things?” Laura responded.

Carmilla frowned, “Black.” 

Laura nodded, “Could have guessed, mine is-”

“Yellow, I know, nice pajamas by the way,” Carmilla smirked.

Laura glanced down at her yellow shorts and shirt, “I wasn’t expecting guests,” she was suddenly feeling very exposed.

“Is that all or are there more tedious facts you’d like to know about me?” Carmilla said in a tired tone. 

“Carm, if I’m going to do this, I need to know what makes you… _you_.” Laura said, gesturing to Carmilla.

“Okay… go get dressed, what’s your favorite breakfast food?” Carmilla said, giving Laura a perfect smile. 

*

 Laura swallowed a large piece of pancake in her hurry to ask another question, “Here’s one for ya, when did you know you were gay?”

“I don’t think I had a… _moment,_ you know, where I realized, I just knew, I preferred kissing girls. What about you?” Carmilla asked, studying Laura closely.

“Buffy,” Laura responded almost immediately.

Carmilla smirked, “Who was that?”

“The TV show and The X Files, Scully was very appealing,” Laura said, dreamily.

Carmilla gave a little _hmm_ , obviously unsatisfied by Laura’s answer and ran a hand through her hair.

“So, in our fake relationship, how did it go?” Laura asked, excitedly, waving her fork as she spoke.

“What do you mean?” Carmilla murmured. 

“You know, who asked who out on a date? When did we meet?” Laura said, dreamily. “Did our eyes meet across a crowded room? Did we get trapped in an elevator together for hours or did our hands meet over the last cookies at the store? Did I save you in some brave and fearless way, what’s our story?" 

Carmilla looked at Laura as if she were insane, “Laura this isn’t a rom com, okay? Let’s just go with how we actually met, LaF introduced us.”

Laura deflated with a sigh, “Carm, _why_?”

“It’s just easier, isn’t it?” Carmilla reasoned, placing her cup down with a huff.

“Fine, where did we go on our first date?” Laura asked, annoyance evident in her voice.

Carmilla shook her head, gesturing to Laura, “You take this one.”

“Okay, hmm…” Laura was thoughtful for a moment, “We went to a carnival!”

Carmilla sat back in her chair, with an irritated sigh, muttering something under her breath.

 “We got stuck on the big wheel for an hour and a half and you had a secret fear of heights and I comforted you and held you close and we talked and laughed and watched the sun go down together-”

“ _No_ , we had dinner,” Carmilla interrupted as if she’d suddenly had enough.

“ _What?_ Carm you _just said that I co_ -” Laura sulked.

“I don’t have a fear of heights and don’t think I would go on a _big wheel_ ,” Carmilla said, irritated.

Laura gave Carmilla an unamused look, “Being your girlfriend is _boring_.”

 “It has to sound realistic, Laura and if you really were my girlfriend, you would _never_ be bored.” Carmilla smirked.

A moment of silence passed as they stared at each other, Laura flushed as she wondered exactly what Carmilla was hinting at, she stood grabbing her plate, “I told LaF, I would be there by now.”

 Laura busied herself at the sink, not looking to see if Carmilla had followed her, after a few minutes, Laura paused as she heard Carmilla speak before her door opened and closed, “I’ll see you later…”

 Alone in her apartment, Laura paused and released a breath slowly. 

*

 “Merry Christmas!” Laura yelled when LaF opened their door.

“Merry Christmas, Laura,” LaFontaine responded with a grin, moving aside and fixing their Santa hat as it slipped over their eyes.

“Where’s Perry?” Laura asked as she entered the apartment.

“Kitchen of course, where she has been for _2 hours_ and she won’t leave or let me help,” LaF said with a shake of their head and a rather forced smile.

“Smells great, Perry, Merry Christmas,” Laura said as she entered the kitchen.

“Laura, you do _eat_ turkey, right?!” Perry said, slamming a tray of potatoes down intensely.

Laura took a step back, “Yes, you know I do,” She nodded slowly. “Everything okay, Per?” 

“Yes, Laura, sorry. Merry Christmas,” Perry smiled and then quickly started to chop up carrots.

“So, Laura…” LaFontaine said with a sly smile, folding their arms and leaning against the kitchen counter, their hat all skewwhiff again. “What the _hell_ went down between you and Carmilla last night?”

Perry dropped her knife, turning to face Laura with interest.

“Oh… that,” Laura said uneasily.

“Yes, what is going on, Laura, dear?” Perry urged.

 “Me and Carm have to pretend to be together for the next 5 months or so until Carm’s mom sells her company.” Laura said, quickly.

“Woah, woah, slow down… What?” LaF asked, raising their eyebrows.

“Okay, so, Carmilla’s mom owns some really popular dating agency or something and she’s selling the company and apparently Carmilla makes her look bad so Carmilla lied to her mom and said we were dating and now we sort of have to pretend to be together until her mother sells the company which could be 5 months from now. Only Carm’s mom was like really _thrilled_ by it all and it’s just not going to end well, guys and I agreed to go to this new year’s thing and you know me, I am not good with lying and Carmilla is _very_ convincing and she promised me cookies and she’s coming over here and it’s all just a little too much for me to deal with right now.” Laura said, sucking in a deep breath as her rambling came to an end.

“Wow,” LaFontaine said, obviously trying not to laugh.

Perry stared at Laura for a moment, “Carmilla’s coming for dinner?! Why didn’t she say something?!” She turned back to the counter and picked up her knife, cutting the carrots in a frenzied sort of way.

“So, what are you going to do?” LaFontaine asked Laura, turning to Perry and taking the knife from her.

Laura shrugged, “She came over this morning… and I said I would do it." 

“You’re kidding? This is _foolish_ , Laura,” LaF shook their head, amused as they began cutting the carrots leisurely.

“Nope, she’s very convincing.” Laura frowned.

“She certainly is… and if I know Carmilla I know she’ll play her part well so… don’t fall in love with her, Laura,” LaFontaine said with a smile, pointing the knife in her direction.

“What? Are you- _I would never- ha!”_ Laura blushed furiously, pulling at the sleeve of her Christmas sweater, tensely.

“Laura, dear, you once fell for a girl who offered you a pen at the bank that one time…” Perry said, giving her a pitying look as she stirred something in a pot.

Laura gasped in outrage, “She had a pretty smile and she was wearing a Gryffindor shirt!”

“Look, that doesn’t matter.” LaFontaine chuckled and then became serious, turning to face her, “I’ve known Carmilla since we were kids and she doesn’t do relationships, she never has. That’s why I told Carmilla to leave you alone, so for your sake and for the sake of our group… please _just be careful_.”

“You told Carmilla to leave me alone?” Laura frowned.

LaF scratched the back of their neck, uneasily, “When she started hanging with you guys, I asked her not to, you know, try anything because… I know what she’s like and I really wanted us all to be friends.”

“Perry said something similar to me,” Laura said looking in her direction.

“I did and it was for the _best_ , so please, Laura, don’t get too involved in Carmilla’s silly scheme.” Perry said pointedly.

“Guys, I’m not going to fall for her,” Laura said, gesturing wildly and shaking her head, feeling as though she was being accused.

“Good,” LaF nodded after a pause, giving Laura a smile, “Now, would you like some eggnog?”

*

 Carmilla arrived while Laura was setting the table, signaled by a knock at the door and LaF announcing, “Merry Christmas, Carmilla, _your girlfriend_ is already here.”

“Very funny,” Laura heard Carmilla’s muffled reply, “I take it, Laura’s already explained it all to you.”

“She did, Carmilla, and _why would_ -” LaF was silenced by Perry’s swift exit from the kitchen.

“LaF,” she said loudly, “I need your help in the kitchen, leave Carmilla be, Merry Christmas, Carmilla, we’re about to eat if you want to help Laura set the table.”

LaF was quickly shoved into the kitchen by Perry and Laura heard intense whispering begin.

Laura looked up as Carmilla entered the living room and gave her a small smile. Carmilla lingered for a moment in silence before walking around the table toward Laura.

“Cupcake,” she gripped her arm, “Look we need to-”

“Dinner is served, dinner is served! Come on, Laura, Carm, grab something from the kitchen!” Perry stormed into the room, heaving the turkey onto the table.

Carmilla released an irritated breath and took a step back, moving quickly for the kitchen with Laura on her heels.

 “Can I borrow you for a minute?” Carmilla rounded on Laura as soon as they were alone.

“What?” Laura responded and allowed Carmilla to pull her down the hall.

“What are you doing?” Laura said irritated, pulling her arm from Carmilla’s grasp. 

“Cute sweater,” Carmilla teased, glancing down at the little reindeer pattern.

“Is that why you pulled me out here?” Laura glared at her.

“No, look, my mother gave me this… we’re officially invited,” she pulled a card from her back pocket.

It was an invitation to Carmilla’s mother’s new year’s extravaganza; Laura’s eyebrows rose in surprise and then she began to read it aloud.

“To Carmilla and Laura… wait, _did she make this this morning_?” Laura laughed, turning it over, thinking about how they’d only just agreed to go to this thing last night.

Carmilla shook her head, “Probably, who cares? What are we going to do?”

“I said we’d go didn’t I…?” Laura smiled distractedly at the invitation.

“Well I’m glad you’re finding this so amusing, Laura,” Carmilla glared.

“Carm, your mom is like super sweet,” Laura laughed.

Carmilla rolled her eyes, “This isn’t funny-”

“Laura, Carm… what are you doing? Dinner?” LaF’s head poked into the hall, their santa hat sliding off.

“Sorry, LaF!” Laura hurried after them.

“Laura,” Carmilla said, impatiently.

Laura turned to face her, speaking quickly, “I already said we’d go so we don’t have much of a choice.”

“But Laura, the-”

 “Come on!” Laura insisted, leading them back into the living room, sufficiently ending the conversation.

 They took their seats at the table, Perry gave them a questioning look before she began to slice the turkey.

 Laura noticed LaF giving Carmilla what looked like a cross look from across the table and Carmilla just shrug.

They began to eat in silence, Laura congratulated Perry on the wonderful meal.

Carmilla also offered her compliments, it was all so... reserved.

It went on like this for a few more awkward minutes until…

LaF’s fork hit the table in a clatter and they turned to Carmilla. “Carm, what’s actually going on? Why did you lie to your mother like that?” 

Perry let out a sigh and shook her head.

“LaF…” Carmilla actually looked shamefaced, “You know my mom…”

 “You can’t ask Laura to do this.”

 “You know how obsessed she is with me finding a girl, I couldn’t take it anymore,” Carmilla stabbed at a potato. 

“This is going to mess every-” LaF started.

 “It’s fine, LaF,” Laura interrupted, “I’m doing it, I’ve already agreed,” She placed the invite on the table.

 LaF shook their head and then swiped up the card.

 “One of Lilita’s new year parties? Jeez, she’s like Gatsby, don’t these shindigs usually last for days?” LaF said, casually, dropping the invite back down.

 Carmilla released a breath and shook her head at LaFontaine as if they’d just divulged a secret.

 “Laura, there’s something you should know,” Carmilla said irritated, “I was trying to tell you out there but you wouldn’t listen to me. My mother’s “new year extravaganza” is sort of a big deal.”

 “A bigger deal than that party we were at last night? Because if that wasn’t a big deal I can’t wait to see what is,” Laura smirked and LaF nodded in agreement.

 Carmilla seemed encouraged by this statement, “Well, she’ll expect us to… stay. It’ll be sort of like a mini vacation.”

 “Good, I could use a vacation,” Laura mused, loading her fork.

 LaFontaine chuckled.

 “So, you’re okay with that? Me, you… together? Coupled together…”

 Laura swallowed a rather large mouthful of turkey. “Coupled together?”

 Carmilla nodded, “Yeah, it’s a new year’s party, those tend to go on… and the townhouse is kind of far…”

 “Oh…umm… Sure, I mean, that’s- we can… manage,” Laura mumbled quickly, staring at her plate.

After a quiet moment, Carmilla sucked in a breath and Laura glanced in her direction, she looked as though she wanted to say more but thought better of it. She gave Laura a small smile and then turned to speak to LaFontaine. 

*

 Laura smiled to herself as she watched LaFontaine’s head droop back onto the couch as they fell asleep, their hat disappearing behind the chair. LaFontaine had chosen the movie they were gathered to watch, The Muppet Christmas Carol, at their request. After dinner, Perry seemed to have finally calmed down as she relaxed into the couch next to LaF.

Carmilla stared at her phone, in the small chair next to the couch, completely uninterested in the chosen film. Laura had been forced into the only remaining seat, the bean bag which was surprisingly comfy so she didn’t care but why was it always her?

She checked the time as she yawned, stretching as she moved to stand, grabbing some mugs to wash up in the kitchen. Humming to herself, Laura did not hear Carmilla come in.

“Cupcake.” 

“ _Christ, Carmilla_ ,” Laura leapt with fright splashing water all over herself.

Carmilla chuckled and leaned on the worktop next to her, their arms almost touching.

“Are you okay?” Carmilla asked quietly.

Laura nodded, continuing with her task.

Carmilla turned to face her fully, speaking quietly. “I was just thinking about that conversation we had the other night.”

“Which one?” Laura asked, keeping her eyes on the mug she was holding. 

“The one where you said you were bored with your life and I just wondered whether you still felt that way.”

Laura could feel Carmilla’s stare.

“Carm, you know, it’s almost as if you did all this deliberately,” Laura mused with a little smile.

“I didn’t… actually,” Carm shrugged.

Laura looked up, meeting her gaze, “I didn’t think you did, in fact I… hadn’t given it much thought since.”

Carmilla gave a small nod as she studied her and then she looked away, changing the subject, “So, was this the first Christmas you’ve spent away from your dad?”

Laura nodded. 

Carmilla handed her a towel so she could dry her hands.

“How has it been?” Carmilla asked.

Laura shrugged, suspicious of the sudden questions. “It was good, Perry is a way better cook then my dad anyway.”

“Look Laura…” Carmilla sucked in a breath, moving closer again, “If you wanted to change your mind… about this… you can, I’ll tell the truth.”

They stared at each other, Laura chewed her lip. Why did Carmilla always look at her with such intensity? It made her jittery.

Laura shook her head. “As if I could say no to you,” she said in a lighthearted tone, an attempt at a joke. She tried to walk around Carmilla to leave the room.

Carmilla stepped in front of her.

“I’m serious, Laura, you don’t to have to do this.”

“Carm… I’ve made my decision, I’m doing it,” she said with certainty, although she wasn’t sure why, Carmilla was giving her an out… why wasn’t she taking it?

Carmilla considered her a few more seconds before nodding, stepping aside and mumbling a quiet, “Thank you.” 

*

 “I win,” Carmilla sat back in her chair, grinning, “Sunk all your battle ships… again.”

 “I’m gonna head home, guys,” Laura dragged herself up from the bean bag chair as gracefully as she could, frowning at Carmilla.

 “Cupcake, are you a sore loser?” Carmilla teased, standing as well with a stretch that drew Laura’s attention to her body.

 Laura shook her head, remaining on topic.

 “I am _not_ a sore loser, you’re a cheater, nobody wins eight times in a row.” Laura feigned anger, her mouth dropping open when Carmilla winked at her.

 “Did you _cheat_? Let me see your side,” Laura was about to take a step toward Carmilla but was blocked by Perry walking between them, “Wait, wait,” Perry yelled as she shuffled off into the kitchen.

 LaF stood, “Oh, are you both going?”

 Carmilla nodded, “Yeah, I’ll head out as well.”

“Are you sure?” LaF asked. 

Another nod, “Thanks for dinner, Perry.”

Perry returned to the living room with some tupperware containers. “Take these leftovers please, we won’t get through it all,” shoving the containers into their hands.

“Thanks, Perry, thanks for having us over, LaF,” Laura said with a smile.

“No problem, any time, you know that,” LaF said, placing a hand on Perry’s waist.

Out on the sidewalk, Laura wrapped her coat around her a little tighter, “Ooh, it’s really cold,” she shivered, opening the app on her phone to order a cab.

“That’s winter for ya,” Carmilla said, walking close beside her, looking surprisingly unaffected by the cold in her leather jacket. “Where are you going?”

“Home,” Laura said, as she stared at her phone.

“I’ll take you,” Carmilla tugged on her elbow, Laura hadn’t noticed Carmilla’s car parked a little way down the street.

“Carm, you live nowhere near me,” Laura said, allowing herself to be escorted towards Carmilla’s shiny car anyway, she didn’t know what type but it sure looked expensive.

“I’m not going home,” Carmilla replied, opening the car door for her.

 Laura had never been in Carmilla’s car before.

“Where are you going?” Laura asked as soon as Carmilla took her seat in the car. 

The car seemed to start on its own and Laura blinked in confusion. 

Carmilla didn’t answer her as she flicked a few switches, turned off the radio with a grimace as it played a loud Christmas song and drove off down the street, focusing on the road ahead.

 “I’m taking you home,” Carmilla replied soon after.

 “But where are _you_ going?” Laura asked again.

 “To the bar, probably.” Carmilla said, coolly.

 “ _To the bar?_ Why are you going to the bar on Christmas day?” Laura’s frowned as she stared at Carmilla.

 Carmilla gave a little shrug, “Don’t know, just am. You know, not everyone celebrates Christmas, Cupcake.” 

 “No, you’re not drinking alone in McGee’s on Christmas day,” Laura said, determinedly.

Carmilla glanced at her for a few short seconds, her expression unreadable.

“Come with me,” Laura heard herself saying.

“With you?” Carmilla gave her a puzzled look.

 “Yeah…I mean, I have beer at my place and someone to… keep you company,” Laura gestured to herself as she said this.

 Laura didn’t know what she was doing, what she was saying. All she knew for sure was that she didn’t want Carmilla down in the bar today.

 Carmilla didn’t respond, she glanced in her rear-view mirror and over at Laura very briefly before her eyes returned to the road.

 Laura thought Carmilla wasn’t going to respond at all, so she gave up, relaxed into her seat, gazing out of her passenger window.

 “I wouldn’t want to intrude,” Carmilla said, quietly.

 Laura’s gaze flickered back to Carmilla and she smiled, laughing to herself quietly.

 “What?” Carmilla asked, smiling as she looked at Laura. 

“Intrude? Carm, you broke into my apartment this morning…” Laura smiled.

 Carmilla seemed to consider that, her eyebrow raised, “I wouldn’t say I broke in, but fair point.”

 “You wouldn’t be _intruding_ anyway,” Laura half shrugged, pushing her hair behind her ear, feeling suddenly a little nervous.

 “I’ll think about it,” Carmilla mumbled.

 “You’ve only got about 30 more seconds to think about it,” Laura said as Carmilla drove onto the street she lived on.

 She parked up, exactly half way between Laura’s apartment and the bar.

 “Thanks for the ride,” Laura said as she opened the car door and Carmilla followed suit.

 She stepped up onto the sidewalk and turned to face Carmilla.

 Carmilla looked down the street at the bar and then at Laura as if she was struggling to make the decision. Laura wasn’t sure what was even holding her back, unless Carmilla wanted to be alone, but why didn’t she just go back to her own apartment?

Laura took the risk and held out her hand, Carmilla seemed consider her options for a few more seconds before she placed her hand in Laura’s and allowed herself to be pulled up the street.

 She released Carmilla’s hand as they stepped into the elevator, although if she honest with herself she didn’t really want too, it had been a while since she had held anyone’s hand, she told herself, she missed that sort of contact.

 They didn’t speak in the elevator or when they followed the corridor to Laura’s door, or when Laura unlocked it. Carmilla walked slower, behind Laura with her hands tucked into the back pockets of her jeans.

 They were still silent as they entered the dark apartment, the atmosphere was unexpectedly tense, a tension that made Laura feel apprehensive, fidgety. Carmilla brushed up against her as they both lingered in the doorway and then Laura jumped into action, pushing those feelings down.

 She felt a little better once the apartment lights had been switched on and she moved quickly for the kitchen to put the leftovers in the fridge, grabbing two beers while she was there, her head felt clearer now, she breathed a sigh of relief.

 “So…” Laura said as she returned to the living room, placing the bottles on the table, she watched as Carmilla removed her jacket.

 “So?” Carmilla countered, her stare was penetrating, it made Laura take deeper breaths, she removed her coat.

“Got you, um… beer,” Laura swallowed, this was a mistake, she should never have invited Carmilla up to her apartment.

 “Thank you,” Carmilla said quietly, taking a seat on the couch. 

Tension was rising again, Laura wondered whether Carmilla could feel it. 

Another moment of silence.

“…What will we do?” Laura asked.

“Hmm?” Carmilla mumbled.

“The party at new year’s, you said it was kind of a big deal, what will we do?” Laura took a seat next to Carmilla, breathing a sigh of relief as conversation started to flow.

“Knowing Mother, she’ll hassle us to no end, she’ll introduce us to _hundreds_ of people we don’t know and _don’t care to know_ , she’ll try to talk you into some future plan, like, going out on the boat or some kind of horse related sport, maybe an eight-course dinner and ultimately she will get her way because she always does,” Carmilla said, with an unhappy smile.

 Laura wasn’t sure how to respond, she sipped her beer.

 “So, there’ll be more things we’ll have to attend… as a couple,” Laura spoke her thoughts out loud.

 Carmilla nodded, “Once she has you within her grasp… she won’t easily let go.”

 They sipped their beers in silence.

 “Who’s your... favorite author?” Laura asked randomly.

 “Back at this again, are we?” Carmilla smiled, shaking her head.

“Hey, I’m just interested in you,” Laura shrugged.

“Who’s yours? No, wait, I know it’s that woman who writes those Potter books, right?” 

“JK Rowling, yes, one of my favorites.” Laura nodded. “How did you know?”

 “I think you mentioned it on your show once,” Carmilla said, thoughtfully.

 “I thought you didn’t watch my show,” Laura gave Carmilla a confused smile.

 “I might have caught it… once or twice,” Carmilla glanced at her quickly and then busied herself drinking her beer.

 “Oh,” Laura mumbled in pleasant surprise.

 “You talk about your dad all the time… you never speak about your mom,” Carmilla studied her now.

 “How observant of you, she died when I was nine, car accident.” Laura said, frankly. “My mom always loved Christmas actually, it was her favorite time of year,” She reminisced with a smile. “And it was sad for a little while not having her there, especially on days like today but then I got over it, I mean, Christmas is just another day after all, right?”

 “That photo, it was taken on Christmas eve,” Laura stood, walking across the room to the shelf where she kept her dvds and picked up a frame, handing it to Carmilla.

 Carmilla smiled as she looked at it, a photograph of a young Laura sitting next to a woman who looked a lot like the Laura she knew now, they were smiling at each other. “You look like her,” Carmilla murmured.  “How old were you here?”

 “I was 7,” Laura took her seat next to Carmilla again.

 “I’m really sorry about your mom, Cupcake,” Carmilla said, staring at the photograph.

 “It’s okay, Carmilla, it’s fine,” Laura shrugged, knocking their shoulders together with a smile.

 Carmilla placed the frame down, “My dad died… but I can’t remember him, I think maybe that’s a good thing,” she gave Laura a gentle look.

Laura considered that, “I’m glad to have known my mother, she was a delightful woman.” 

“Like you then?” Carmilla said, lifting the mood with her remark and returning Laura’s shoulder knock with one of her own as Laura blushed and shook her head.

 Another quiet moment passed.

 “So, what will you to do now that you have to be all… _inconspicuous_? No more flirting down at the bar?” Laura smiled.

 “…There’ll still be flirting at the bar, Cutie,” Carmilla winked, biting her lip taking Laura by surprise.

 Laura smiled, “Wow…” She whispered, shaking her head, feeling her insides turn to mush.

 Carmilla smiled at her, leaning closer, “Get used to it, Cupcake.”

 “I’m- I- don’t think I can,” Laura said, flushed.

 Carmilla smiled, gazing at her. “You know, Cupcake, it’s not going to be hard-” she was interrupted by a phone ringing.

“Oh, that’s my dad,” Laura said hopping up from the couch. She grabbed her coat, searching the pockets and pulled out the phone. She paused before answering it, looking at Carmilla.

 “Answer it,” Carmilla urged, sipping her beer.

 “Dad! Merry Christmas! How is Cancun?” Laura returned to her seat, she smiled at Carmilla.

 Carmilla returned her smile and pointed towards the door, signaling she was going to leave.

 Laura frowned and shook her head quickly.

 “Wow, that’s great, dad. No, it was snowing here, passed couple days, not today though. Tell Rosie thanks for the sweater, such an unusual knitting pattern. Did she make it herself?” She winced, she had hated the sweater.

 Carmilla finished her beer, standing up, Laura tried to grab her arm.

 “Dad, can I call you back? There’s just something-” she said hurriedly as Carmilla started to pull on her jacket. 

Carmilla shook her head.

 “Yes, I will, I do. Okay, love you, bye.” She moved across the room to Carmilla.

 “Stay Carmilla, I don’t want you to go,” Laura practically pleaded.

 “Laura, that was your dad, you see me nearly every day, call you father back.” Carmilla said, seriously, moving toward the front door.

 “I’ll see you tomorrow?” Laura asked, following Carmilla to the door.

 “Probably, when do you go back to work?” Carmilla pondered.

 “Day after tomorrow.”

 Carmilla nodded, running a hand through her hair, her hands slipping into her back pockets again.

 Laura swallowed, why did this feel like the end of a first date or something? Should she go in for a hug? Would that be odd? They’d hugged before… Laura was usually drunk when that happened.

“Call your dad back,” Carmilla said, reaching for the door.

 Laura nodded, “Bye, Carm.”

 “See you around, Creampuff.”

 Laura rolled her eyes at the ridiculous nickname and then Carmilla was gone.

 45 minutes later, Laura ended the phone call with her dad and she sighed as she sat back on the couch, the apartment was silent. She stared at the two empty beer bottles on the table in front of her, feeling lonely and she smiled as she thought about Carmilla.

 Maybe one drink at the bar wouldn’t be so bad? She could wish Mike the bartender a happy Christmas…

 She hurried down the steps outside of her building, already keen to get out of the cold and she headed down the street toward the bar.

 Stopping abruptly, mid stride. What was Carmilla’s car still doing here? Had she caught a cab home? She’d only had the one beer…

 Of course, Laura thought, shaking her head, she hurried along to the bar.

The bar was quieter than it usually was but nowhere near empty by any means. Carmilla was sat at the bar, nursing what appeared to be a scotch.

“Carmilla, what are you doing here?” Laura asked as she approached.

She looked around at Laura in mild surprise, “What are _you_ doing here?” She countered. 

“I- I… saw your car still parked out there and I _assumed_ you were in here,” Laura said, not willing to admit she’d come down for a drink herself.

She was about to take the seat next to Carmilla but paused, “Did you want to be alone?” 

Carmilla considered that, “Not if you’re here to keep me company, Cupcake,” she said, tapping the stool next to hers. “What can I get you to drink?” 

*

 Laura awoke with a song stuck in her head… _Hungry eyes_ _, one look at you and I can't disguise, I've got hungry eyes._  

Christ, was she hungover? She grimaced into her pillow and then slowly opened her eyes, squinting… why the hell was there a blood-stained towel on her bedside table??? What was going on?!

She sat up quickly, steadying herself as she wobbled and then gasped when she noticed Carmilla next to her.


	3. In My Sights

“Carmilla…?”  Laura whispered, Carmilla lay fully dressed on top of the sheets almost as if she had just collapsed there, she didn’t look hurt but Laura couldn’t see much of her. She reached out and tapped Carmilla’s shoulder, she didn’t budge.

Laura threw off her sheet, shaking her head as she tried to remember what happened last night. She couldn’t see any injuries and she was wearing pajamas, these were all good signs.

 She squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to remember… she went down to bar, Carmilla was there…

 And then she remembered…

 

 9 hours ago

 

Laura slammed her glass down on the table, “I win!” she cheered, she raised her hands in the air in triumph and laughed, “I win! I win! Carm, I knew I would!”

Carmilla finished her drink at her own pace, shaking her head at Laura with mock disappointment, “You cheated, you’re a cheater, you started before me, that wasn’t fair,” her glass joined Laura’s on the table.

 Laura stuck out her tongue, “Okay, don’t talk to me about cheating, I’m still angry about Battleship,” she slurred, shaking her finger at Carmilla.

 They were sat at opposite sides of the usual booth, Carmilla shook her head with a smile and signaled to the bartender.

 “Same again?” He called across the slowly emptying bar.

 “No, whiskey. Laura?” Carmilla looked to her.

 “Glass of wine, the house wine, whatever that is, please, Mike.”

 Carmilla turned back to face Laura, “I did not cheat during that game, you’re just easy to read and you kept putting your ships back in the same place.”

 Laura was quiet for a moment, she looked as though she were trying not to laugh, “I thought it might… throw you off.”

 “Well, it didn’t work, Cupcake,” Carmilla sat back in the booth with a pleased look.

 “Okay, so here’s something you don’t know about me,” Laura began, “So, when I was 12 my friend, Hannah, dared me to sneak into my neighbor’s yard to steal apples from his apple tree. He was this really mean meanie-”

 Carmilla nodded, amused by the story so far.

“There was this fence separating the yards and it had these little sharp points at the top, thanks, Mike,” Laura said as the bartender brought over their drinks.

 “I think I know where this is going,” Carmilla nodded at the bartender, picking up her glass.

 Laura laughed, taking a sip of her wine.

 “So… I climbed over, got the apples and threw them back over at Hannah. I was climbing back over and I almost made it and then Hannah decides to scare the crap out of me, by saying that the old dude was there, don’t remember his name, so, I’m scrambling to get back over, slipped and impaled myself, right here-” she pointed to her right side, “-on one of the spikey things.”

 “True story,” Laura said proudly, taking another sip of her wine.

 Carmilla’s eyebrows rose, “Wow, what happened next?”

 “I didn’t feel any pain at first, so, I managed to kinda roll and fall into my yard, and then the blood started to seep through my shirt. My dad was _horrified_. I never stole any more apples again after that.” Laura nodded

 “And then what happened?” Carmilla urged.

 “Oh, I had 5 stiches and it was all fine! I have a neat scar like the Nike thing,” Laura beamed, making a tick motion with her finger.

 Carmilla laughed, placing down her glass, “I kinda wanna see that…”

 Laura looked around the bar and then walked around the table to sit next to Carmilla, she lifted the side of her shirt just so the scar was visible on her ribs.

 Carmilla leaned in close, running her finger along the scar, “Looks more like a chicken to me.”

  “What? Let me see, move your finger,” Laura said, peering down at the scar.

 “What? _No, it does not_ ,” Laura frowned, dropping her shirt, blushing as she kind of agreed.

 “Your turn, Carm,” she looked at Carmilla expectantly, resting her head in her hand as she leant on the table.

 “Hmm. I don’t think I have a story like _that_ …I dislocated my pinky once?” Carmilla shrugged, “I slipped, it’s not very interesting.” Carmilla chuckled.

 Laura tapped her arm, comfortingly, “It is interesting, Carm. When?”

“I was in college, LaF fixed it.” Carmilla picked up her glass. “Although it bends at a strange angle now…” She showed Laura.

“Eww, Carm, don’t do that,” Laura grimaced, covering Carmilla’s hand with her own. 

“Tell me about… your first kiss,” Laura said, fearlessly, sipping from her glass.

 Carmilla rolled her eyes with a smile, “I don’t really remember it, I think I was… 7, it wasn’t very exciting. What about you?”

 “It was with a boy named Kevin and I was 13,” Laura said, after thinking about it for a moment.

 “And with a girl?” Carmilla studied her closely.

 “Oh, that was Danny,” Laura replied quickly.

 “Danny?” Carmilla frowned, “Like Danny, Danny _Lawrence_ , Danny?”

 “Yep,” Laura nodded, “Didn’t you know, we dated for like two months when we were in college.”

 “Wait a sec,” Carmilla finished her whiskey, “You and Danny…” She took a deep breath as if she needed a moment to come to grips with this news.

 “ _Danny and you_ … How did that work? I mean, she’s like three feet taller than you.”

 Laura giggled, “Not well obviously since we broke up.”

 “That must have been awful for you,” Carmilla said, giving Laura an intense look.

 “What, the break up?” Laura wondered aloud.

 “No, dating Danny,” Carmilla smirked.

 “Hey!” Laura knocked shoulders with Carmilla. “She’s our friend!”

 “She’s your friend,” Carmilla replied as she signaled to the bartender for the same again.

 “You don’t like her?” Laura pouted.

 “I never said that, Cupcake,” giving Laura’s arm a comforting squeeze.

 Laura looked at Carmilla suspiciously for a moment before mumbling, “Bathroom,” and sliding out of the seat, shuffling off in that direction.

 When Laura returned, she stopped at the jukebox, leaning over it, having to focus on it closely in her inebriated state.

 “You always end up at the jukebox, Cupcake,” Carmilla appeared beside her.

 “I don’t know how to choose,” Laura frowned down at the machine, mashing the buttons.

 “And you can never get it to work either, here let me,” Carmilla mumbled. “What song did you want?”

 Laura shrugged, smiling at Carmilla happily.

 “No not that… definitely not that… god, no… these are all… what about this one… _Hungry Eyes_?” Carmilla asked, looking at Laura unsure.

 “Yeah, whatever, Carm,” Laura smiled up at her, she couldn’t care less about the jukebox when Carmilla was standing so close.

 “Okay.” Carmilla mumbled.

  _Hungry Eyes_ started to play.

 Laura’s head started to bop and Carmilla turned to return to the booth.

 “Carm, dance with me,” Laura said quickly.

 “To this?” Carmilla smiled, chuckling at her.

 “Yes!”

 Laura reached out and grabbed Carmilla’s hand, pulling her close. Carmilla seemed a little embarrassed by it all but she chuckled when Laura started to dance.

 “You’re meant to spin around,” Laura insisted with amusement as Carmilla just smiled at her.

 She shook her head but allowed Laura to spin her around.

 Laura giggled when Carmilla started to sing the words into her ear. 

They danced together in front of the jukebox as if there were no one else in the bar, laughing and twirling until the song came to an end.

 “Put it on again,” Laura giggled into Carmilla’s ear.

 “Christ, you’re _unruly_ tonight,” Carmilla smirked, letting go of Laura’s hand to request the song again… and then a further three times.

 “Carm!” Laura laughed, glancing around the bar, others frowned over in their direction as the song began to play again.

 They danced all the way back to their booth and sat down beside each other, grabbing up their glasses.

 By the third time the song began to play, Laura looked around as commotion started in the bar.

 “Shut that goddamn thing off!” an older man shouted, looking up from this glass and hitting this hand off the table.

 “What? _It’s our song_ ,” Laura yelled back, acting all offended, covering her mouth to try and hide her laughter.

 When the song started a fourth time, Carmilla finished her drink quickly, grabbed Laura’s hand and made a beeline for exit, stopping on the way to throw some cash down on the bar, Mike smiled at them and shook his head, they were loyal customers after all.

 They burst into fits of laugher once they reached the street outside, “Let’s get out of here before the song starts again,” Carmilla said, Laura grabbed her hand as she started to sing.

 “I've been meaning to tell you, I've got this feelin' that won't subside…” She sang loudly as Carmilla shushed her and then smiled with surprise when Carmilla sang the next line.

“I look at you and I fantasize… you're mine tonight,” Carmilla sang, she shook her head, smiling as if she couldn't honestly believe she was going along with this.

“Now I've got you in my sights…” Laura sang, smiling as she stared at Carmilla.

 “With these hungry eyes, one look at you and I can't disguise, I've got hungry eyes,” They sang together terribly as they stumbled down the street.

 “I feel the magic bet- oh crap, I live here,” Laura said pointing at her building as they reached it.

 Carmilla chuckled when Laura had the audacity to ask her to keep the noise down. 

“You’re the one making all the noise!” Carmilla said as they entered the elevator.

 “Can I ride on your back?” Laura slurred, moving behind Carmilla as the elevator began to move.

 “What?” Carmilla smiled, giving Laura a confused glance.

 “Let me,” she wrapped her arms around Carmilla’s neck from behind.

 “Are you deranged?” Carmilla laughed, allowing Laura to jump up onto her back as she grabbed her legs.

 “Where too?” Carmilla said as the elevator came to a stop on Laura’s floor.

 “Carry me to the door, oh, your hair smells good,” Laura mumbled.

“Christ, can’t breathe,” Carmilla teased and Laura loosened her grip.

“To my door,” Laura pointed again.

 “Why am I doing this?” Carmilla murmured to herself.

 She walked the 30 feet around the corner to Laura’s door. “You need to get down now, Cupcake.”

 Laura slid to the floor with a sigh and then proceeded to very slowly find her key and open the door.

 “Open it,” Carmilla urged as Laura took her time, leaning against the wall.

 “Hang on, I can’t see, it’s too dark,” Laura frowned.

 “Here, let me,” Carmilla offered her hand.

 “Fine,” Laura handed over the key.

“Hey, stop trying to climb me, I can’t-” Carmilla laughed.

“We’re in,” Carmilla said and Laura clapped, heading straight for the kitchen as they entered the apartment. 

Carmilla followed, “Okay I have… beer and whiskey over there and a bottle of the yucky champagne I stole from your mother’s party,” Laura said, turning to look at Carmilla.

 “Whiskey for me, please,” Carmilla smiled at her.

 “Okay, beer for me, let me find you a glass,” Laura said, standing on her tippy toes to reach the cabinet above her head.

 “Oh my god, you can barely even reach the cabinet in your own kitchen,” Carmilla laughed, leaning on the counter for support.

 “Hey, I know what I’m doing, I do it all the time,” Laura wobbled on her toes, struggling to grab a glass.

“Let me get it,” Carmilla pressed up behind her, grabbing the glass with ease as Laura gave up and flung her arm out, annoyed, knocking Carmilla’s arm.

 “Oh shit,” Carmilla said as the glass smashed on the floor. “Hold on, there’s glass everywhere now.”

 “It’s okay, Carm, let me just grab the brush,” Laura dodged the glass and began to search around as Carmilla picked up some of the larger shards.

 Laura looked around when she heard glass hitting the floor again.

“I cut my hand,” Carmilla said, frowning with pain, staring as the blood started to ooze from her palm.

“ _Carm! What the_ \- here take this,” Laura said, throwing a towel at her. “…I have- in my room, a kit, it’s in the closet.”

She pushed Carmilla toward the bathroom. “Run some water on it, clean it or something.”

Laura searched the closet in her bedroom, “Does it hurt?” she asked when Carmilla entered the bedroom.

Carmilla shrugged, sitting on the edge of the bed, the towel wrapped around her hand.

Laura wandered over with her kit, kneeling infront of her. She grabbed Carmilla’s injured hand and threw the towel on her bedside table.

 "It looks okay... it looked worse with all the blood,” Laura said, “Let me just… we can bandage it and you’ll be all good.”

 Laura gave it a quick clean and then bandaged it up gently.

 “Looks good, Cupcake,” Carmilla smiled down at her.

 Laura blushed and then placed a gentle kiss to the palm of Carmilla’s hand where the bandage sat.

“...Let’s go and get that glass cleaned up,” Laura said, standing.

*

 “Stop touching it,” Laura said, pulling Carmilla’s injured hand into her lap and holding it at the wrist as they sat together on the couch.

 Carmilla hummed as she sipped her whiskey, her head dropping back on the chair, “What are you doing tomorrow?”

 “Nursing a hangover, I think,” Laura smiled.

 “Ahh, of course. Good thing you’re not at work.”

 “Yes,” Laura nodded, turning Carmilla’s wrist over to look at the time on her expensive watch, “I would have to be at work in 2 hours.”

 Carmilla grimaced, “It’s really late isn't it? Maybe I should go,” she placed her empty glass down and ran a hand through her hair.

 “No, no,” Laura shook her head, “Stay here, I will watch over you and your injury and make sure you survive the night.”

Carmilla smiled as Laura laughed.

 “Because the likelihood of that is very slim, is it?” Carmilla replied.

 “I’d never forgive myself, if you bleed out,” Laura nodded with a look of concern and Carmilla chuckled.

 “Looks like I have no choice,” Carmilla said, tiredly.

 Laura tapped Carmilla’s arm, friendly, as she moved to stand, grabbing up their glasses and headed into the now clean kitchen, Carmilla followed lingering in the doorway.

 “I can take the couch,” she said, quietly behind her.

 Laura turned and met her gaze, “What? I need you close by, come on,” she nodded with certainty.

 Laura held out her hand with a cute smile, it hung in the air between them until Carmilla sighed and gave in. She pulled Carmilla along with her into the bedroom.

 “You know, I had the best time tonight,” Laura mumbled dreamily as she floated around the room picking up clothes.

 Carmilla sat down on the bed, watching her closely, “Well, I’m glad,” she smiled.

 Laura wandered over, humming hungry eyes, staring at Carmilla, she stopped right in front of her, Carmilla looked at her amused, a pause followed.

 “I’ll be… right back,” Laura whispered and abruptly left for the bathroom.

 When Laura returned to the room, Carmilla lay still on top of the sheets, Laura wondered whether she was already asleep.

 “Well, good night, Carm,” Laura said, cheerfully as she climbed into bed, switching off the bedside light.

 “…Good night, Cupcake,” Carmilla mumbled quietly.

Laura shook her head with a smile before turning over.

*

 “Carm?” Laura whispered to her as she slept.

 “Carm?” Her steady breathing faltered and after a moment she turned slowly and gazed at Laura with a frown.

 “Laura?” She cleared her throat and swallowed, shaking her head. She slowly sat up on her elbows, she smiled sleepily at Laura, “How are you feeling, Cutie?” she ran a hand through her hair.

 “Your hand. How’s your hand?” Laura asked, catching sight of Carmilla’s bandage.

“What?” Carmilla mumbled in a daze.

  “Your hand,” Laura gestured.

 Carmilla gazed down at her bandaged hand for a moment and then nodded as if she were remembering the incident.

 “Oh… yeah, umm… good I think,” she posed her answer almost as if she were questioning it herself.

 Carmilla lay back down, cuddling up to one of Laura’s pillows.

 Laura gazed at Carmilla for a moment, “I’m gonna make coffee,” she carefully got to her feet.

 “Oh, thank god,” she heard Carmilla mumble.  Laura smiled to herself, humming as she left the bedroom.

 In the kitchen, Laura had odd flashbacks to the previous night, embarrassing themselves in the bar, singing in the street outside of her apartment, she grabbed the milk from the fridge, smelling it to see it was still good.

 “Just us,” Perry called as she abruptly entered the apartment, door swinging open, making Laura almost drop the carton.

 Perry disappeared into her rarely used bedroom, as LaF hovered in the kitchen doorway with a little wave as a greeting.

“You just up?” They gave her a confused smile.

“Yeah… late night,” Laura yawned as she continued with the coffee.

“Why? What happened? Are you _hungover_?” LaF smirked.

“Nope,” Laura lied.

“Yes, you are,” they chuckled, “What were you doing last night?”

“Coffee?” Laura asked them.

"No thanks,” they shook their head.

LaF turned for the living room just as Carmilla made an appearance, leaving Laura’s bedroom. Their mouth dropped open and Laura felt her face heat up, she stared down at the coffee mugs.

“Where’s the coffee at?” Carmilla didn’t even seem to notice LaF.

“Here,” Laura handed her a cup.

“Thank you, Cupcake,” she said, moving to the couch to sit down, LaF followed, looking between the two of them struck with shock.

“Hi LaF,” Carmilla said as they joined her.

“What- what’s going on?” they asked quickly.

 Perry joined them, looking mildly surprised to see Carmilla there.

 “Carmilla stayed the night, we went to the bar last night and she came back here after, we hung out,” Laura said, trying to sound casual.

 “You hung out?” LaF asked, looking between them suspiciously.

 “Yep, that’s what people do, LaF,” Carm said, sipping her coffee.

 “And, what’s wrong with your hand?” They asked, pointing at the bandage.

“I cut it… in Laura’s kitchen,” Carmilla replied in a bored tone.

“So… the two of you…” LaF seemed to be struggling with this.

 “We went to the bar, got drunk, came back here, got more drunk, _that’s it,”_ Laura said, quickly. “Now I have a killer hangover...”

 “Okay, sounds like we… missed a good night,” LaF said, looking toward Perry.

 A long pause followed this, Laura sipped her coffee loudly.

 Perry cleared her throat, “So... I can make breakfast?”

 Laura nodded vigorously and then stopped, feeling dizzy, “Yes, yes please, Perry I love you, I really do.”

 “Carmilla?” Perry looked toward her.

 “Actually, I’m gonna head home,” Carmilla said as she stood, headed for the kitchen.

 Laura followed, glancing back at LaF and Perry momentarily before entering the kitchen.

 “Carm, um… so, umm…” Laura ran a hand through her hair as Carmilla who was fiddling with the faucet, turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

 “Cupcake?”

 “I just wanted to say… I had a really good time last night,” Laura blushed red, she wasn’t sure why she felt the need to say this, she hung out with Carmilla all the time, it wasn’t a big deal… except this sort of felt like it was.

 Carmilla smiled, her hands slipping into the back pockets of her jeans, “Me too... we should-”

 Laura didn’t give herself a change to back out, she moved quickly wrapping her arms around Carmilla’s neck in a hug.

 Carmilla steadied them, her hands coming up to Laura’s waist, “Woah- What did I do to deserve this?” She mumbled next to Laura’s ear.

Laura smiled and gave a little shrug as they hugged, pulling away slowly after a moment.

 Their eyes met, Carmilla’s hands slipping back down to Laura’s waist.

 Laura suddenly became aware of her breathing, why was she so breathless? Carmilla’s eyes were so perfect and dark and did she have to lick her lower lip like that?

 “Laura, did you want eggs with your breakfast?” Perry was suddenly storming into the kitchen, a woman on a mission.

 Carmilla’s hands dropped and she took an abrupt step back, knocking into the counter.

 Laura who was equally startled by Perry’s entrance, turned to face her with a gasp.

 “…Egg?” Perry repeated, looking between the two of them questionably.

 Carmilla moved quickly, leaving the room.

 “Um... yeah sure,” Laura murmured to Perry.

 Carmilla was pulling on her jacket, “I’ll see you all later or not …” she shrugged, looking around but not really meeting anyone’s gaze.

 “Bye,” Laura said quickly as Carmilla opened the apartment door. 

LaF gave a small wave and a see ya later, as they headed for the kitchen.

 And then Carmilla was gone.

 Laura stared at the apartment door for a moment and then wondered what the hell she was doing, turned and headed back into the kitchen.

 “Laura-” LaF began as soon as she entered the room.

 “Guys, we just hung out, it was fun, I actually had a great time,” Laura interrupted, feeling the need to defend herself.

 “That’s good, dear,” Perry nodded, “But just remember what we said-”

“Be careful. Carmilla is really-” LaF started.

“I know, LaF, it’s not- I’m not going to do anything… stupid,” Laura said, crossing her arms.

“What about bacon, do you even have bacon?” Perry said, changing the subject. 

*

 Three days later, Carmilla, Perry and LaF were sat in the usual booth, when Laura entered the bar, she waved at Danny who was waiting at the bar and she took a seat next to Carmilla.

 “Hi guys,” she smiled at everyone, Carmilla gave her a small nod and Laura removed her scarf and coat.

 “How’s it being back at work, L?” LaF mused.

 Laura sighed, “Same with a significant lack of holiday joy and it’s not even new year’s yet.”

 “Speaking of new years-” Danny said as she joined the table, placing down her drinks and pulling up a chair.

 “That’s for you,” Danny murmured offhand to Laura.

 “Oh, thanks,” Laura smiled

 “-what are we doing?” Danny asked with an air of excitement, smiling at everyone.

LaF looked at Laura who looked at Carmilla.

 Danny didn’t know about their little arrangement.

 “Me and Carm are actually going to another of her mom’s parties,” Laura said as casually as she could.

 “Why?” Danny smirked, laughing.

 “Well, we are-” Laura began.

 “Because they’re _girlfriends_ ,” LaF joked, looking very happy with themselves.

 “What?” Danny smiled with confusion, her brows drawing together.

 “It’s kind of a long story, but me and Carm are pretending to be dating… until Carmilla’s mom sells her... dating agency.” Laura nodded as she finished.

 “Why?” Danny frowned. “Laura, you’re like the most honest person I've ever met, how are you going to do that?”

 Laura crossed her arms, “As a matter of fact, Carmilla’s mom _loves me_ and already believes it all,” she said smugly.

 “That's true, she does,” Carmilla confirmed, sipping her drink.

 “I don’t understand, why would you do that?” Danny shook her head.

 “Danny, it doesn’t really…” Laura paused, frowning as something caught her attention.

 Why was that song… Laura’s eyes widened as she realised hungry eyes had just started playing on the jukebox.

 Carmilla started to chuckle next to her and then she shook her head, amused.

 Laura could feel her face heating up as she recalled dancing with Carmilla just across the room.

 “What are you laughing at?” Perry asked, intrigued.

Laura opened her mouth to respond and then hesitated.

 “Nothing… it’s nothing,” she shrugged, shaking her head.

 She realised she didn’t want the others to know, it felt almost too personal to tell them, what happened was between her and Carmilla. The others didn’t need to know.

Laura glanced quickly at Carmilla next to her, she was frowning down at the table, she stood suddenly. “Bathroom,” she mumbled quietly. 

*

 Laura leant on the bar as she waited for her drink, she checked the time, almost 9. Danny had left already, Laura wondered whether Kirsch would make an appearance tonight.

 “So, my mom is expecting us for dinner on the 31st … and then we can _try_ to escape but she’ll probably want lunch on the 1 st and then with any hope we can leave.”

 Laura looked around at Carmilla who was suddenly beside her.

 “Oh…um, okay, yeah,” Laura nodded.

 “Is that okay?” Carmilla asked, leaning on the bar and looking over at the booth where Perry and LaF were sat.

 Laura nodded, “Of course, it’s okay.”

 She picked up her drink, thanking the bartender.

 “Why didn’t you tell them?” Carmilla said, quietly.

 Laura frowned with confusion, “What?”

 “The others,” Carmilla gestured to their booth, “Why didn’t you want the others to know... about the song, about the other night?”

 Carmilla looked her then, her expression neutral but Laura could see the hurt in her eyes when she looked away.

 “Carm… that- I,” Laura stumbled, she hadn’t expected this. “I didn’t _want_ them to know, I dunno…” She shook her head. “I just- it was between you and me, why would you want LaF to know, or Perry or Danny?”

 Carmilla seemed to consider that, “You’re right… I thought- I’m not sure what I thought- I guess I thought you regretted it or something,” she shook her head.

Laura laughed silently, “It sounds stupid but it felt… _personal_ to me,” she blushed.

 Carmilla smiled, “…not stupid,” she mumbled.

 “So, we’re okay?” Laura asked, placing her hand on Carmilla’s shoulder so she would look at her.

 “Yeah, of course,” Carmilla responded with a smile.

 “So, what did we miss?” Laura asked as they returned to the table.

 “I was just saying I hadn’t seen Carmilla hit on a single woman all night and then Perry said, she hasn’t seen you hit on a woman all week,” LaF said, amused.

 "She can’t,” Laura smiled and Carmilla sighed, running a hand through her hair and then relaxing her arm across the booth behind Laura.

 “What do you mean?” LaF asked.

 “I’m being… _inconspicuous_ for a while,” Carmilla said, moving around a little restlessly in the booth as if she didn’t want to talk about this.

 “Why?” Lafontaine smiled.

 “Because, me and Carm are, _you know_ … she has to- she can’t really be seen with anyone else,” Laura responded. 

LaF looked as though they were trying to hold back a laugh, “Oh, I bet it’s _killin’_ you.”

 Carmilla smiled but she didn’t look happy, “No, actually it’s not.”

 “Sure,” LaF smiled.

 “Don’t goad her, LaFontaine, that’s not very nice,” Perry frowned at LaF and they wrapped an arm around her.

 “So… you're both taking this seriously then?” LaF looked between the two of them.

 Laura nodded assertively, “Yes, yes we are…”

 “Wait so… essentially…” LaF paused as they tried to contain themselves, “You’re not going to sleep with anyone for the next 5 months?” LaF laughed, looking at Carmilla.

 “ _LaF_ ,” Perry frowned.

 “No… it’s not-” Carmilla sighed. “I have… my ways.”

 “What are they, booty calls?” LaF responded quickly.

 Carmilla scowled at them and gulped down the rest of her drink.

 Laura found herself frowning down at the table. Was Carmilla still going to sleep with other women? Not that it bothered her at all… because it totally didn’t. It’s not like Carmilla actually had any reason not to. They weren’t actually dating.

 “There’s a difference between keeping a low profile and not sleeping with anyone at all,” Carmilla responded after a moment.

 “I suppose,” LaF nodded, “But have you actually slept with anyone since you and Laura made your little arrangement?”

 Perry almost spat out her drink, elbowing LaF in the side. “That is _personal_ , LaFontaine!”

 Carmilla frowned across the table at LaF and didn’t answer their question, she rotated her empty glass in her hand, she looked as though she’d rather like to throw it.

 Laura picked at the label on her bottle. She didn’t want to know the answer. Carmilla could sleep with whomever she wanted, it didn’t matter to Laura, not one bit. Why would it?

 LaF stood, stretching as they did so and then raised their eyebrows at Laura.

 “Remember what I said L, nothing stupid, okay?” LaF said as they pulled on their coat.

 Once LaF and Perry had disappeared, Carmilla cleared her throat, sitting up in the booth, glancing sideways at Laura.

 “What did they mean by that?” Carmilla asked quietly.

 “Erm… nothing, I don't know,” Laura lied.

 She wasn’t going to do anything stupid and she definitely wasn’t going to fall for Carmilla Karnstein.

No way.


	4. New Year's Eve

Laura gazed at Camilla’s hands as they gripped the steering wheel, her long fingers tapping along perfectly to the beat of the music. Laura rubbed the palm of her hand on her knee as she itched to reach out and touch. Her eyes then followed Carmilla’s hand as she moved to run a hand through her hair and Laura’s eyes fixed on Carmilla’s face staring at her as she focused on the road as she drove.

 Carmilla sang quietly to herself, “ _I'm burnin’, I'm burnin’, I'm burnin’ for you_ ,” her head bopping to the song. Laura wasn’t certain how long she had been staring but Carmilla eyes found hers and Laura looked away quickly.

 “What’s wrong?” Carmilla asked, frowning at Laura with concern for a moment before her eyes returned to the road.

 Laura gave a little shrug, not looking in Carmilla’s direction, “I’m just… nervous, I guess.”

 With their bags packed, they were headed out toward Lilita’s townhouse for the highly anticipated new year’s extravaganza.

 Carmilla glanced at her quickly again and her hand lifted off the steering wheel as if she were going to reach out to her but dropped back onto the wheel.

 “We can do this, it’ll be easy, Cupcake. Don’t worry so much,” Carmilla said unconcerned.

 Laura nodded, contemplating silently as she looked at Carmilla for a few more seconds before turning to stare out of the passenger side window.

 Carmilla spoke quietly after a few seconds of silence, “Thank you… for doing this, you did-”

 “I’m happy to do it,” Laura responded quickly, shaking her head.

 Their eyes connected for a moment.

 “So, what should I expect?” Laura asked with a smile, trying to lighten the mood.

 “A nightmare,” Carmilla smiled as she stared at the road ahead.

 “Come on, Carm, it won’t- will it _be that bad_?” Laura worried.

 Carmilla met her gaze with a raised eyebrow and she smiled, “No, I’m sure we’ll have a good time.”

 Laura smiled though she feared Carmilla was just saying what she wanted to hear.

 

 “Fancy neighborhood,” Laura thought aloud some time later as they passed many decorative looking homes.

 Carmilla gave a nod of acknowledgment, “It’s just up here,” she gestured down the street and Laura felt a sudden twinge of nerves as the car slowed down.

 “Wow…” Laura swallowed, staring up at the extravagant townhouse which apparently had 5 floors… “… so many windows.”

 Carmilla was out of the car and opening the trunk before Laura had even opened her door, she hurriedly followed her.

“ _Oh… I’m so happy you’re here!”_ Laura turned just in time to be grapped into a hug by what she assumed was Carmilla’s mother but it looked more like a dark blur. Laura could do nothing but wait for the hugging to stop.

 “What a pleasure to see you again, Laura,” Lilita pulled away, giving Laura a broad smile.

“Carmilla Darling!” Her mother pulled Carmilla into a hug.

“ _Come on, in, in, quickly, let’s get out of the cold_!” Lilita yelled, Laura wondered how she could be so upbeat all the time as Lilita pushed her towards the house.

 As expected, the house was more extravagant and lavish than Laura could have imagined.

Beyond the big white door lead to a hall, beautiful staircase, lots of expensive looking art just like Lilita’s fancy apartment, random large vases, Laura was careful not to walk into, a clock on the wall that Laura thought was maybe similar to the size of the moon.

 As they moved down the hall, Laura came to a sudden stop as a man with a small ladder walked into the hall.

 “Oh, don’t mind these gentlemen, they are decorating for the party tonight!” Lilita said, smiling at him.

 Did they really need to decorate? Laura thought, the place looked amazing as is.

 Carmilla grabbed Laura’s hand as they were urged into a grand living room with high ceilings, Laura was initially surprised but tried to pretend that holding Carmilla’s hand didn’t make her heart beat faster.

 There was a dining room with the largest table Laura had ever seen with an expensive looking chandelier and two more living rooms, one had a grand piano because why not and a kitchen which was bigger than Laura’s entire apartment with chefs preparing something delicious smelling.

 “Dinners at 7.30 by the way, oh, I must show you to your room!” Lilita squealed with delight as she hurried from the kitchen.

 Laura frowned when Carmilla released her hand as they reached the hall and they grabbed up their bags.

 They started up the impressive stairs and then down a hall, followed by more stairs and then more stairs.

 “Um… this is a lot of steps,” Laura gasped, feeling her legs grow tired.

 Lilita appeared to be flying up them with ease. “You’ll be up on the fourth floor!” She yelled, halting so suddenly that Laura almost walked into her.

 She opened a heavy looking door, and Laura’s mouth fell open. She had been expecting extravagant but this was something else.  The bed, man did it look comfy.

 “Wow… bed,” was all Laura could say.

 “Bed indeed,” Carmilla replied, walking around her and dropping down onto it.

 “You must come down and see the boat tomorrow, we can go to dinner, how about some shopping, a spar day maybe?” Lilita began.

 “No, Mother, Laura has a thing,” Carmilla gestured to her, sleepily.

 “A thing?” Lilita asked, giving Laura a sad frown.

 Laura moved towards Carmilla, feeling uncomfortable. “Yes, a work thing,” she nodded, god she couldn’t lie to save her life.

 Lilita frowned, “Oh… what a shame, what work thing?”

 “So many… _emails_ to …read,” Laura mumbled.

 “ _What_?” Carmilla whispered, glaring at her from the bed.

 “ _Emails?!_ Nonsense! You know actually, you must come down to the art gallery tomorrow,” Lilita insisted.

 “We’ll see, Mother,” Carmilla said, sitting up and giving her mother a dismissive look.

 “Okay, well I’ll just leave you two to it,” she headed towards the bedroom door, “Remember dinner is at seven thirty!” she yelled before pulling it closed behind her.

 “What's wrong with you? _Emails?”_ Carmilla said, lying back on the sheets again, shaking her head.

 “You weren’t much help,” Laura responded, falling onto the bed next to her and curling up.

 They were both quiet for a moment.

 “Do we have to go to the party, can’t we just stay here,” Laura mumbled.

 “I wish, this bed is amazing,” Carmilla yawned.

 Laura opened her eyes and looked at Carmilla, “It's a shame you won’t be sleeping in it,” she smiled mischievously.

 Carmilla gave Laura a sad look akin to the one her mother had given her only moments ago.

 “I’m kidding,” Laura laughed.

 “I don’t have to,” Carmilla said, “I can sleep-”

 “No, of course not, Carm,” Laura said giving her arm a reassuring tap.

 Another moment of silence as they both lay still, Laura could feel her eyes growing heavy.

 “I am enjoying spending time with you,” Laura muttered.

 “Really?” Carmilla’s eye’s opened.

 “I mean we were friends before, but you were always something of a… mystery to me,” Laura admitted.

 Carmilla smiled.

 “What are you wearing?” Laura asked, quietly.

 “Hmm?” Carmilla responded, her eyes closed.

 “Tonight, what are you wearing?” Laura replied.

 Carmilla tussled her hair, running her hands over her face, Laura opened her eyes at the sudden movement, “I don’t know, I’m not sure.”

 “What do you mean?” Laura frowned.

 “I have a few outfits around here... I hate these things,” Carmilla shrugged.

 Laura wanted to suggest a nice tight suit like the one she'd worn on Christmas eve.

 Carmilla rolled over as if exhausted by it all. “I’ll wear jeans,” she mumbled.

 “What? I brought a dress!” Laura said, waking up a little.

 Carmilla chuckled into the duvet, “What color?”

 “Purple, dark purple,” Laura said, closing her eyes.

 “Okay, I’ll see what I can do,” Carmilla said, curling up on her side.

 “Don’t fall asleep, Carmilla,” Laura mumbled.

 “Why not? Have a nap with me,” she said, quietly.

 “No,” she giggled as Carmilla ‘s arm landed on top of her and wrapped around her.  

 “Yes, I’m tired,” Carmilla smiled.

 Laura smiled, what was wrong with taking a quick nap. 

*

 “Oh, you’re up,” Carmilla said, as Laura came around, pushing her hair out of her face.

 Crap, had she been drooling?!

 “How long was I asleep?” Laura said, bewildered.

 “Couple hours,” Carmilla shrugged, as she appeared to be folding clothes.

 “What?!” Laura pushed herself to her feet. “We have to get ready, Carm!”

 “Laura, I have something for you,” Carmilla said, approaching her and holding out a small dark box.

 “What is this?” Laura said, taking the box, not feeling quite awake.

 “Your Christmas present,” Carmilla said, almost shyly, her hands slipping into the back pockets of her jeans.

 “You gave me a Christmas present, a book and a mug, I loved them remember,” Laura said as she opened the box.

 It was a silver bracelet.

 “Yes, but this is what I bought my _girlfriend_ … in case anyone asks,” Carmilla stated.

 “Oh, this is what you bought your _girlfriend_ for Christmas…okay but, wait... what did I get you, girlfriend you, I mean,” Laura said, frowning.

 Carmilla shrugged, unbothered, removing the chain from the box.

 “But… Carm, you got me something and I didn’t get you anything,” Laura said, taking a step closer.

 “So? I’ll just make something up, it doesn’t matter,” Carmilla said, reaching for Laura’s hand.

 Laura slowly held out her arm and Carmilla secured the clasp in place on her wrist.

 “It’s perfect, Carm,” Laura said, feeling overwhelmed. “Was it expensive? I can help pay-”

 Carmilla started to laugh, her thumb rubbing against Laura’s inner wrist, “Laura, its’s a gift for my girlfriend. _A gift_.”

 Laura pulled her lower lip between her teeth, feeling unexpectedly overwhelmed.

 “Come on, we need to get ready, mother will be after us if we don’t make an appearance soon,” Carmilla said, taking a step away.

 Laura nodded, “Sure, um…” she cleared her throat, “I’m just gonna grab a shower,” she nodded to herself, heading to the bathroom and then turning back for her bag, feeling a mixture confusing emotions.

 Laura took a deep breath in the solace of the large bathroom, she shook her head, catching sight of her flushed face in the mirror, she could still feel the phantom touch of Carmilla’s thumb on the inside of her arm.

 It wasn’t a real gift, it was all part of their play, a part of Carmilla’s game. Laura forced herself to remember LaF’s words, don’t do anything stupid, none of this is real.

 An hour and a half later Laura found herself alone in the bedroom, make up ready, hair quaffed, struggling with the zipper on the back of her dress. Carmilla left the bathroom fastening the buttons on her white shirt, Laura felt a jolt of excitement at the confirmation that Carmilla would indeed be wearing a suit tonight.

 “You look heavenly,” Carmilla mumbled with a smile as she moved across the room toward her.

 Laura could feel the heat in her face, “Carm, stop trying get me all flustered.”

 “I’m not,” Carmilla sauntered towards her, “I meant it, the flusteriness… is just a bonus delight. Let me help you.”

 Carmilla took over, fastening the zip of Laura’s dress and then placing her hands on the tops of Laura’s shoulders, catching each other’s gaze reflected in the mirror.

 “See, stunning,” Carmilla smiled.

 “Thanks, Carm,” Laura muttered quietly, they were both still for a few more seconds, lost in each other’s reflections.

 “I… I’ll just grab the rest of my suit,” Carmilla said, disappearing from view.

 Laura remained still for a few more seconds, taking a few gulps of air to clear her head, it’s all an act, it’s all an act. She nodded to herself.

 “So… we match,” Carmilla said as she pulled on her dark purple vest.

 Laura turned to face her, she couldn’t stop the smile from forming, she adored Carmilla in a suit, “We do,” she responded with a swallow.

 “Here, let me help you,” Laura stood and offered a hand, fastening the cuff links on Carmilla’s shirt.

 “Thank you, Cupcake,” Carmilla said, her gaze drifting from Laura’s face to her hands, losing a little of her confident demeanor.

 “Your Mom, she’ll be expecting us soon?” Laura almost whispered.

 Carmilla blinked for a second before she responded, “Um… yes, now actually,” she nodded, grabbing her dinner jacket. “Are you ready?”

 Laura nodded, trying to find an edge of composure, her hands wringing together, “You look…” She paused, taking a shaky breath.

 Carmilla smirked, placing her hands on the tops of Laura’s arms as if to calm her, “Perfect, exquisite, gorgeous, dazzling?”

 “Yes,” Laura blushed, “All of those… things.”

 “Thanks, Cutie,” Carmilla gave a little chuckle, “Are you okay?”

 Laura took a deep breath, Carmilla looked breathtaking, she was having a hard time looking at her, “Yes, I’m fine, let’s get this over with.”

 Down the many flights of stairs they wandered, noise from below echoing through the house. Laura tried to stay calm.

 “There you two are! You both look amazing! Oh, it brings tears to my eyes!” Lilita appeared as if from nowhere when they reached the bottom of the stairs.

 “Dinner! Dining room!” she pushed them in that direction. “More people will be arriving later, just a few close friends for dinner.”

 “A few close friends?” Carmilla mumbled with a frown as they entered the dining room to be greeted by at least 50 people, scattered around the large room.

 Laura gasped, the decorations in the dining room were phenomenal. There was banner of hundreds of balloons that seemed to float over the center of the table, a pyramid of glass flutes filled to the brim with champagne that Laura had only ever seen the like of in movies, garlands of twinkling lights covered the high ceiling like stars and the dining table had been decorated flawlessly in gold and black.

 “Please find your seats next to mine,” Lilita said hurriedly and seemed to disappear in the blink of an eye, probably to greet more guests.

Laura glanced at Carmilla who gave her a supportive smile.

 “Carm, I don’t recognize a single person here.”

 “Did you expect too?” Carmilla asked, moving toward the dining table.

 Laura gave a tiny shrug.

 “These are our seats,” Carmilla said, glancing around the room uncomfortably every few seconds.

 Carmilla pulled out Laura’s chair.

 “Thanks,” Laura said nervously, sitting down heavily in her chair.

 “Carm?!”

 Carmilla who had been moving to sit down, looked around bewildered.

 “ _William?_ You said you couldn't make it tonight!” Carmilla grinned.

 “Laura, this is William, my brother,” Carmilla smiled at her and Laura slowly got to her feet, “Will, this is Laura, my girlfriend.”

 “So, mother was telling the truth, _girlfriend?_ Carmilla has a girlfriend?” Will chuckled.

 William was taller than Carmilla but there was obvious likeness between them. He was very handsome, his fitted tuxedo showed of his slim build. Laura noted how Williams eyes seemed to sparkle just like Carmilla’s. A 2018 top hat sat jauntily on his head.

 “Laura, what a pleasure it is,” William said, giving Laura a brilliant smile and stiff nod that was almost a salute.

 “How long?” William said casually taking a sip of his champagne.

 Laura glanced quickly at Carmilla, who hesitated to speak for a moment, “A month or so,” she responded, wrapping an arm around Laura’s waist, pulling her closer.

 “Champagne?” Carmilla said, handing Laura a glass from table to which Laura took an ample gulp, she hated champagne but she couldn’t get through this night completely sober.

 “Tell me, how’d you do it Laura? I never thought I’d see the day,” Will said, smiling at Laura genuinely.

 Laura cleared her throat, “She- I-I, well we-”

 “Ah, William!” a voice boomed nearby, drawing everyone’s attention, an older gentleman with greying hair and moustache.

 “Excuse me ladies,” William said with a nod in their direction before he greeted the fellow.

 Laura finished her glass of champagne, feeling the liquid settle uncomfortably in her empty stomach.

 “You okay?” Carmilla asked, looking concerned.

 Laura nodded and found her seat once more.

 As everyone settled in for dinner, Lilita said a few words as she entered the room and found her chair next to Carmilla. The first course was soon served and Laura found herself relaxing into the environment a little more as conversations on the table seemed to flow naturally. Carmilla spoke quietly with her mother as Laura ate a few spoonfuls of soup.

 “I want to know all about you, Laura,” Lilita was suddenly smiling in her direction.

 “Oh, um...” Laura swallowed, her fingers moving to play with the bracelet around her wrist, “Well, as you know I’m an anchor for Silas News One.”

 Lilita nodded, “I really will have to watch, when do you work?”

 “Morning, early morning.” Laura nodded and Carmilla gave her a tight smile, dropping her arm onto the back of Laura’s chair.

 “Splendid, how’d you get into that business then?” Lilita asked, taking a sip of her champagne.

 Carmilla smiled at her encouragingly.

 Laura found herself tearing at her bread roll. “… I auditioned? Kind of?” She blinked, “I’m hoping it’s sort of a means to an end, it’ll help me when pursuing something better in the future.”

 “Right,” Lilita nodded, “So tell me… how did you both meet? I’d love to know.”

 “You already know mother,” Carmilla spoke through gritted teeth, “We met through friends.”

 “Yes, um… LaFane, is it? An odd name,” Lilita chuckled.

 “LaFontaine,” Laura corrected her, taking a sip of water.

 “Yes, that’s it, so who pursued who? Where’d you go on your first date? Oh, I remember when your father and I were courting, Carmilla, those were the days.” Lilita spoke in a dreamy sort of way.

 “Dinner, we went to dinner,” Carmilla said with quick nod.

 Laura thanked a gentleman as he refilled her champagne glass.  

 Lilita seemed to settle into conversations with others as the main course was served and Laura began to almost enjoy herself. She found she was more or less left to eat undisturbed which she was more than happy with and Carmilla conversed happily with her brother who was seated next to Lilita.

 “Are you okay?” Carmilla asked, grabbing Laura’s hand in both of hers as the dinner plates were removed.

 “Yes,” Laura smiled sincerely, “I’m having a good time, your brother is very entertaining and this champagne doesn’t actually taste so bad.”

 “Don’t let Will overhear you, his ego’s big enough as is,” Carmilla smiled in his direction before returning her gaze to Laura's. “Dinner is almost over, then guests will start to mingle, I’ll try and stay close by.”

 Laura nodded, her gaze landing on their conjoined hands as Carmilla seemed to studying Laura’s hand closely as she spoke, following every groove, running her fingers over the knuckles on the back of her hand.

 Laura wondered whether Carmilla felt comforted by having her so close, she knew she definitely did.

 “Are you okay, Carm?” Laura asked, smiling as Carmilla looked up and met her gaze.

 “Of course,” Carmilla replied warmly, giving Laura’s hand one last squeeze before letting go.

*

 When dinner was over, guests seemed to scatter themselves all over the townhouse as floods of new guests arrived. Music seemed to be playing in every room in the house but playing from where, Laura did not know.

Carmilla made conversation with those she knew, Laura stayed nearby, occasionally shaking hands with strangers or making light conversation which seemed to flow more naturally now. She found herself staring out into the huge back yard which was also decorated impressively, getting lost in her thoughts as she drank her champagne slowly.

 “Laura, how are you?” Carmilla appeared behind her with a perfect smile, reflected in the huge window.

 Laura gave a small shrug, “You know, this isn’t soo hard after all.”

 Carmilla’s hands landed on her waist and turned Laura to face her. Her hands sliding down to her hips as Carmilla gave her a mischievous look.

 Laura sucked in a breath, “Hey, _handsy_ ,” she murmured with a smile, placing her hands on top of Carmilla’s and feeling her face heat up.

 “Hey, I would be handsy if we were dating,” Carmilla winked.

 Laura’s mouth opened as if she were to reply but she said nothing as she stared at Carmilla, she briefly wondered whether Carmilla had had a champagne too many.

 “Carmilla!” Came a voice from behind them.

 Carmilla’s smirk faded and she looked a little annoyed before she fixed a tight smile on her face and turned to greet the guest.

“Laura this is Cornelius Vordenburg, a friend of my mothers,” Carmilla introduced them.

 Cornelius smiled, giving Laura half a hug and small tap on the top of her arm, “It is lovely to meet you, Laura, have you been seeing each other long?”

 “A little over a month,” Laura replied casually as Carmilla wrapped an arm around her waist.

 “And how did you meet, may I ask?” he leaned heavily on a walking stick.

 “Oh, Carmilla’s friend, LaFontaine is dating my best friend and they introduced us.” Laura said honestly.

 Carmilla smiled at her tenderly, placing an unexpected kiss on her forehead.

 “You two are really a beautiful couple, who stepped up then? Who asked who?” Vordenberg asked, Laura was beginning to grow tired of the same questions.

 Carmilla smiled at her again, “I asked Laura on a date.”

 Laura laughed, “ _No_ , I asked Carmilla on a date.”

 “No, Cutie, I asked you.” Carmilla said, giving Laura a tight smile, her eyes screaming at her to be quiet.

 “Nope.” Laura smiled back. 

 Vordenberg seemed to be looking between the two of them, an uncomfortable look a confusion evident.

 Laura smiled warmly at him, after drinking the last of her champagne quickly, “We went to a carnival…”

 “No, we went to dinner,” Carmilla interrupted, a panicky edge to her voice.

 “We got stuck on a ferris wheel,” Laura laughed reminiscently.

 “No, no we-” Carmilla began.

 “ _Carm here_ , she doesn’t really like to talk about it, she’s _very_ afraid of heights-” Laura spoke loudly.

 “Excuse us!” Carmilla almost yelled, grabbing Laura’s hand and pulling her away and out into the back yard.

 Others were dotted around and Carmilla nodded pleasantly at a few guests before turning to Laura.

 “What are you doing?” she whispered.

 “Enjoying myself?” Laura responded, it was true, it was hilarious making Carmilla squirm like this.

 “Laura, we have to keep our story straight-”

 “Carm, we haven’t killed someone,” Laura interrupted, rolling her eyes.

 “Please…” Carmilla pleaded, giving Laura a serious look.

Laura smiled, “Fine but my first date story is soo much better than yours.”

“Laura, if you please just do this for me, I will take you to a goddamn carnival,” Carmilla said quietly.

 “Okay, no problem,” Laura responded in an exaggerated tone.

 “Cupcake,” Carmilla took a breath, gripping her bridge of her nose.

 “Carm,” Laura said, grabbing her hand, “Come on, let’s go back in, it’s cold and it’s getting late.”

 “What time is it?” Carmilla asked sounding a little apprehensive, pulling out her phone.

 “11.40,” Laura said, pointing to one of the many large clocks as they entered the house which seemed to be in every room.

 “I need to talk to you about something,” Carmilla said, “In private,” she added as she moved towards the hall and towards the stairs.

 “Carm, what is it?” Laura asked, quickly feeling nervous as they began to ascend the stairs.

 Carmilla glanced back at her momentarily, “It’s… come on, we need to… be alone.”

 They reached the bedroom quickly, and Laura heaved a exhausted breath as they had taken the steps too quickly, “I told you, Carm, I’m not accepting your moms friend request.”

 “No, it’s not that,” Carmilla said, turning away for a second and running a hand through her hair anxiously and then turning back and looking at Laura with a serious expression.

 “We have to kiss at midnight,” she said quickly.

 “…What?” Laura squeaked, feeling as though all of the air had suddenly left her body.

“We have too,” Carmilla said, shaking her head.

 “No, that’s-” Laura began, pointing a finger at Carmilla.

 “It’s just a kiss… it’s not like I’m asking you too-” Carmilla hesitated, and then shook her head

 Laura sighed, a moment of silence, “Just one kiss?”

 She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t seen this coming, she supposed they would be expected to share a kiss at midnight.

 “Laura, I think… we should kiss… now,” Carmilla whispered, taking a step closer.

 “Why would we do that?” Laura flushed, almost giggling at the absurdity.

 “Because, Cupcake, I’d rather our first kiss not be with an audience,” Carmilla said, looking away as if embarrassed.

 Another moment of silence, “Well… five months, I guess we’re going to have to kiss each other… _occasionally_.” Laura shrugged. Kiss Carmilla? She could do that…

 “Okay,” Laura whispered, steeling herself with a confident nod, taking a step closer to Carmilla. She could do this.

 They gazed at each other for a few moments and Carmilla gave Laura a small awkward smile.

“Okay?” Carmilla murmured, moving closer.

Laura gave another small nod, swallowing harshly.

Carmilla’s gaze shifted to Laura’s mouth as she ran her tongue over her lower lip.

 They were inches apart, she felt Carmilla’s warm breath on her face.

 Her eyes slipped closed as she leaned in a little further and then their lips met.

 Carmilla’s lips were firm against Laura’s and gone just as soon as she began to melt into it. She fought the urge to follow Carmilla’s lips with her own as the kiss ended much too quickly.

 Laura slowly opened her eyes, briefly wondering whether she had done something wrong.

 Carmilla remained only an inch away, she sucked in a shaky breath.

 “Just a kiss, just lips touching, it means nothing,” Laura whispered.

 Carmilla nodded, “Right, means nothing.”

 “Nothing,” Laura said with a small nod of finality.

 “Once more, do you-” Laura did not have to finish as Carmilla’s lips silenced her, her thumbs brushing against Laura’s cheeks as she pulled away again.

 “Nothing,” Carmilla whispered, as their noses grazed.

 “Nothing,” Laura repeated, as she captured Carmilla’s lips again in a firm kiss, her hands sliding into Carmilla’s hair as Carmilla stumbled back slightly, grabbing onto Laura’s hips to steady them.

 The kiss again seemed to end way too soon for Laura’s liking and she breathed a sigh, fighting the urge to kiss Carmilla again.

 Laura was feeling breathless as she pulled away and Carmilla appeared to take a very deliberate step back too which Laura frowned, maybe she had taken things too far?

 “Come on, they’ll be wondering where we are,” Carmilla said, quietly, putting more space between them as she walked around Laura and headed for the door.

 The noise from party grew louder as they moved quickly down the stairs, Carmilla turned to Laura when they reached the ground floor, “Look, we don-”

 “There you are, where have you _been_?!” Lilita’s voice seemed come from nowhere and then she appeared in the hallway.

 “We were… um,” Laura struggled to come up with a response.

 “It’s almost midnight ladies!” Lilita said, checking her watch, “You know what that means, time for my speech!”

 Lilita called everyone to attention and the huge living room slowly filled with crowds, she spoke clearly and seemed to bask in the attention.

 “As midnight draws closer, I’d just like to say a few words. It’s always a delight to host my new year’s celebration and I’d like to thank you all for attending. This year has been a special one for me and as many of you know, a successful year all round. I can only hope for similar this coming year as I myself start to wind down. This new year’s has been particularly special to me as my darling daughter Carmilla celebrates it with her lovely girlfriend Laura, who it has been a pleasure to get to know this evening. I wish them the very best and you all the very best in the coming year… what time is it?” Lilita was checking her watch again.

 Laura felt nauseous as every eye in the room turned to the two of them at the mention of their names. Carmilla gave a smile and a nod and wrapped an arm around Laura’s waist.

 10! 9! 8! 7! 6!

 Carmilla was smiling around at the crowd as the countdown began.

 5! 4! 3!

 Their eyes met.

 2! 1!

 They didn’t kiss immediately, it was slow and careful, when their lips touched it was soft and gentle, unlike the other kisses they had just shared. After a moment Carmilla smiled into the kiss and Laura could not stop the giggle from passing her lips.

 “Happy new year, Cupcake,” Carmilla smiled, warmly, pushing a lock of hair behind Laura’s ear.

 “Happy new year, Carm,” Laura whispered, unable to find her voice.

 Laura was almost certain Carmilla was going to kiss her again as her gaze dropped to her lips when a pair of arms wrapped around Carmilla from behind.

 “Happy new year’s, Carmilla!” William yelled, lifting Carmilla off of the ground.

 “William, put me down or so help me you won’t see another one!” Carmilla yelled, trying to elbow her brother in the head as he held her tight.

 With a laugh, he placed Carmilla back on her feet and she frowned at him, fixing her jacket, “William, how much have you had to drink?”

 “Its new year’s, Carmilla!” He yelled, dropping his 2018 top hat on Laura’s head.

 “Yeah, happy new year, ya big lackwit,” Carmilla said, leaning away from him.

 “Carmilla, don’t tease your brother,” Lilita said, appearing from within the crowds.

 “Happy new year, Carmilla and Laura of course,” Lilita smiled at them and pulled them both into a three-way hug to which William soon joined in on too.

 The party was now almost unrecognizable to the party of 30 minutes ago, people were dancing and cheering and downing champagne like it was going out of fashion. Everyone burst out onto the lawn as a magnificent fire work display seemed to begin with no warning.

 Laura wondered whether she had knocked her head or something, LaFontaine hadn’t been kidding, Lilita was like Gatsby. They watched the stunning fireworks light up the sky for a few moments as guests around them shouted and jeered. Laura felt Carmilla’s hand slide into hers. 

*

 “When will the party end?” Laura groaned, sitting heavily on the edge of the bed in their shared room and slipping off her shoes.

 “Whenever it wants to,” Carmilla mumbled, falling almost face first onto the sheets.

 “I’m ready for it,” Laura yawned as she stood and moved toward the bathroom.

 “Carm, can you help me with my dress?” Laura mumbled quietly, Carmilla’s head popped up from the sheets.

 Carmilla moved soundlessly across the room towards her and began to tug at the zipper, Laura waited for lewd remark or comment from Carmilla but nothing came.

 “Wait, it’s a little… jammed,” Carmilla whispered, placing a steadying hand on Laura’s shoulder, “…There.”

 “Thank you,” Laura said, turning slowly and catching Carmilla’s eye.

 “No problem,” Carmilla nodded then ran a hand through her hair, looking a little tense.

 “Bathroom…” Laura mumbled, pointing in that direction and turning away quickly to hide her blush.

 It was almost 4.30 in the morning by the time Laura climbed into the luxurious bed, sighing with relief. She snatched up her phone she’d left on the bedside table, a few missed calls, from LaF and her dad, a dozen texts and a voicemail she suspected was from her dad. She’d deal with it in the morning.

 Carmilla climbed in beside her a few moments later, as Laura was putting her phone down, “Any news?”

 Laura shook her head as she yawned and switched off the bedside light, “Nope, not anything I can’t deal with tomorrow.”

 They were silent for a spell, “Tonight was pretty good, Carm,” Laura stated.

 “Good, I’m glad, Cutie,” Carmilla said as she stared up at the high ceiling.

 “That grilled cheese sandwich we made was really good,” Laura smiled, thinking of a little over an hour ago when they had snuck into the kitchen for a snack as the party continued.

 Carmilla nodded.

 “Well... goodnight,” Laura mumbled, suddenly feeling very awake.

 Carmilla turned, facing away, “Night.”

 Laura found herself lying awake, even though she felt completely exhausted, Carmilla’s presence beside her seemed to be keeping her alert, heightening her senses, and making her heart beat a little quicker.

She breathed out a heavy sigh.

 “Carm… are you awake?” Laura whispered in the dark.

 “…What is it, Cupcake?” Carmilla grumbled, turning over blearily.

 “Um… well it’s not something- _Did_ I wake you? I was just thinking; do you think it was good idea to eat all of that cheese earlier? They say cheese causes nightmares, don’t they? Is that a myth?  Are you a sound sleeper? Cause I mean I rarely have nightmares-”

 A hand was suddenly covering Laura’s mouth.

 “Mhh!” Laura whined, moving her head, trying to shake off the hand.

 “Cupcake…” Carmilla‘s silhouette hovered above her, “Will you please be quiet?”

 Laura nodded and Carmilla’s hand disappeared, the scent of her familiar perfume reaching Laura’s nose.

 “Okay, did you wake me? No. Are you going to have cheese induced nightmares? I highly doubt it. Am I a sound sleeper? It really depends, not tonight apparently. Anything else?” Carmilla said.

 Laura shook her head, forgetting how to form sentences.

 “Good,” Carmilla spoke in a relieved tone, dropping down right next to her, resting her head on her hand.

 Laura turned to look at her with a sigh, Carmilla reached out and pushed Laura’s hair away from her face.

 “Are you okay?” Carmilla whispered.

 “Think I’m just a little wired,” Laura replied, rubbing her eye rather aggressively.

 “Relax,” Carmilla said, reaching out and grabbing Laura’s hand and carefully locking their fingers together.

 “Close your eyes,” Carmilla murmured as she relaxed against the pillows.

 Laura sucked in a breath and let her eyes fall closed, they were still for a few moments.

 “This must be the first time I have really enjoyed myself at one of my mother’s revelries…” Carmilla’s spoke quietly, “Thank you for that.”

 “No problem… Carm,” Laura said drowsily. “… Anytime.”

 Carmilla chuckled silently next to her.

 “I really hope I… don’t have… cheese nightmares.” Laura mumbled, deliriously.

 “I’ll be here if you do…” Carmilla whispered, tightening her grip on Laura’s hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter has taken a while, I really want this fic to be perfect and i kept doubting everything I wrote, I started the chapter over more than 3 times. 
> 
> Thanks for the encouraging comments and for still sticking with this fic.


	5. Whole Lotta Feelings

It was the vibration of Laura’s phone that woke her, her eyelids felt as if they had been welded shut as she tried to force them open. She sulked, unhappy with the unexpected wake up, reaching around blindly for her phone. She’d been woken from a delightful dream in which Carmilla had just made her a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

The vibration had stopped by the time Laura had acquired her phone and she frowned at the screen with one eye barely open.

1 Missed Call: LaFontaine 8:26am

She sighed, thanks for that, LaF.  She let her eyes fall shut again, basking in the now completely silent room. It was a moment or so before Laura became aware of the steady breaths against her shoulder and another moment before she felt the heat radiating from the person lying next to her.

 Laura turned her head, squinting at Carmilla who still looked sound asleep as she lay so close, leaving her entire half of the huge bed unoccupied. She couldn’t stop the smile on her face as she regarded Carmilla and remembered the events of the previous night. She noted with relief that the sounds of the party had finally died down.

She stretched a little under the sheets, regaining the use of her tired limbs, her thigh coming in contact with Carmilla’s knee, she moved to sit up. An arm unexpectedly wrapped around her middle, trapping her and a small groan of, “Don’t,” was uttered. Laura glanced sideways at Carmilla who didn’t even look as though she’d spoken. The arm tightened around her a little more and Laura could feel Carmilla’s hand gripping her waist, her thumb grazing her ribs through her thin tank top.

“Erm…. Can I just use the bathroom?” Laura whispered, hoping that Carmilla hadn’t noticed the sudden squeakiness in her voice as she tried to remain calm from the unanticipated cuddling.

Carmilla didn’t speak again but her grip on her loosened and Laura was able to stand, feeling a little loss as she looked back down at Carmilla’s now outstretched and lonely arm.

On her return from the bathroom, Carmilla didn’t look as though she’d moved an inch, Laura stretched her hands above her head as she wandered back over to the bed, she grabbed Carmilla’s hand as to not squash her arm as she lay back down.

Carmilla took control of her own limb and returned her hand to Laura’s waist pulling her closer as she settled beneath the sheets, pushing her knee under Laura’s leg as her lips grazed Laura’s shoulder.

Laura lay still for a moment, curiosity getting the better of her as sleep now seemed to avaid her, she grabbed her phone from the bedside, her gaze landing on Carmilla every few minutes as she appeared to sleep on.

“What time is it?” Carmilla groaned right into her ear as she pushed her face right into Laura’s neck.

“8.55… almost,” Laura said quietly, trying not to react to Carmilla’s nose tickling her throat.

“So, why...are you... awake?” Carmilla spoke slowly, seemingly taking a lot of effort to string a sentence together in her drowsy state.

Laura gave a small shrug and then pulled her lower lip between her teeth as Carmilla made a noise somewhere between a groan and a moan into her ear which made Laura’s stomach clench.

“Um… Carm, do you think your mom needs help cleaning?” Laura asked suddenly thinking of the state the house might be in at this point.

Carmilla chuckled, her breath hot against Laura’s neck, “I guarantee you if you leave this room, you’d have never guessed what happened here last night, the clean-up will be long over.”

Oh… of course, Carmilla’s mother would have staff for that sort of thing.

Laura turned to face Carmilla and began moving backward slowly out of her embrace towards the end of the bed.

“Please don’t, if you leave this room, I’ll have to follow you and I don’t want to move,” Carmilla said, finally opening her eyes and giving Laura a little pleading look.

Laura gazed at Carmilla for a moment and then rolled her eyes, giving in, Carmilla seemed to sigh in relief.

“What are you doing, holding me hostage?” Laura asked as Carmilla pulled her close again.

Carmilla nodded slowly, her eyes already closed.

She must have still been tired as she soon fell asleep again and when Laura awoke a second time, it was 10.37. Carmilla as expected hadn’t moved much, if anything she was clutching Laura tighter. 

Laura smiled as her eyes lingered on Carmilla, she had a strong urge to do things she knew she couldn’t like plant kisses all over Carmilla’s face to wake her. She shook her head trying to clear it, she shouldn’t have such thoughts.

After a few more moments of bliss, Laura cleared her throat, “Carm, get up,” she spoke a little harsher than intended.

“What, what?” Carmilla said, waking quickly, glancing around in confusion.

“We have to get up before your mother comes looking for us, it’s almost 11,” Laura said, sitting up.

Carmilla groaned and rolled over.

Laura hopped up off the bed moving quickly across the room to the bathroom as far away from Carmilla she get given the circumstances. 

*

 Fresh faced and ready to go, with their bags in hand, Carmilla and Laura huddled together at the top of the stairs on the fourth floor, unmoving.

“Okay we’ll just tell her we’re leaving and we can be on the road in 10 minutes tops,” Carmilla whispered with a small shrug almost as if she was trying to convince herself.

“Do you think that will actually work?” Laura said, frowning down the stairs.

Carmilla didn’t respond at first, just pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and then said, “We can try,” before moving past Laura down the stairs.

All seemed quiet when they reached the ground floor, the house looked as perfect as ever, a clean scent in the air. Carmilla had been right, you’d have never guessed 100 people had partied here until the early hours.

They dropped their bags and Laura followed Carmilla as she moved quietly through the house, which appeared to be deserted.

“Mom?” Carmilla called wandering into the dining room and through to the second living room where the grand piano sat.

“Good morning! Did you sleep well? It’s getting late, I was thinking we could head out for lunch, my treat!” Lilita appeared, walking in from one of the doors that led outside to the lawn.

Laura took a step back, banging into the door frame, at her sudden appearance.

“Actually mom-” Carmilla began.

“I guess it is a little too late in the day for any grander plans,” Lilita interrupted, moving past them into the dining room, “Laura, don’t you look lovely this morning. Where did you both go last night? You missed the acrobats!” Lilita yelled, moving toward the front of the house.

“Um…” Laura was struggling to keep up, she was certain Lilita had sent a compliment her way but was now reoccupied thinking about acrobats.

“Mom,” Carmilla interrupted her, she turned to look at the both of them, “Actually mother, Laura and I were going to go, we need to get back to the city-”

 “ _Come on,_ I rarely get to see you, Carmilla dear and I’d love to spend more time with Laura.” Lilita threw them a small sad frown. 

“Sure,” Laura heard herself mumbling, “Lunch is fine, we can do lunch.”

“Excellent! I’ll have the car bought around!” Lilita yelled, disappearing from sight.

Carmilla gave her a sour look and Laura shrugged.

“I’m sorry, I can’t say no to your mom,” Laura whispered, following Carmilla “She gives me the same little frowny face that you make.”

Carmilla turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow as if she were about to comment on what Laura had just said but she merely regarded Laura for a moment before following on after her mother.

*

 “So, Laura, tell me about your family,” Lilita insisted, as she picked at her salad, eating a piece of tomato.

They were sat in a restaurant so fancy that Laura had never felt so out of place or underdressed in her loose denim shirt with a yellow paint stain on the sleeve. Glancing at Carmilla who looked bored out of her mind in her ripped dark green t-shirt, Laura did feel a little better.

“It’s just my dad… my mom died when I was young,” Laura said, glancing between Lilita and her cooling chicken breast.

“Oh, I’m so sorry dear,” Lilita said pausing momentarily.

“It’s fine… But my dad actually just recently remarried and his wife is great, we get on well,” Laura smiled at Lilita reassuringly.

“Carmilla never knew her father, William barely remembers him now, it is so difficult to lose a parent,” Lilita said somberly, giving Laura’s arm a small squeeze. “How old were you?”

“Nine,” She glanced at Carmilla to find her gazing at her, she gave Laura an encouraging smile.

“Just you and your father then?” Lilita asked and Laura nodded, her mouth feeling incredibly dry.

“What does your father do?” 

“He’s a dentist,” Laura said, loading her fork with food even though she didn’t feel the slightest bit hungry.

“Laura, will be moving into Carmilla’s apartment then?”

Carmilla began to splutter and cough as she had just taken a sip of water, Laura offered her a touch on the arm and tried her best not to smile.

“ _Dear_ , are you okay?” Lilita looked little taken aback staring at Carmilla with concern.

“Mom-” Carmilla cleared her throat, “we’ve only been dating for a month, we’re not- it’s a little early…”

“Oh, I know, I just - You know what I’m like and Laura here is a wonderful girl, Carmilla.” Lilita wriggled a little with apparent excitement as she grinned at her.

“I’m aware of that, Mother,” Carmilla forced a smile, squeezing her fork in a tight grip, Laura covered Carmilla’s hand with her own and she immediately loosened her grip and dropped the fork, entwining her fingers with Laura’s.

Laura felt guilt weigh heavily in her stomach and she picked at her remaining lunch, she was starting to feel even worse about lying to Carmilla’s mom the more she got to know her.

*

 That evening Laura took her seat in the usual booth in McGee’s opposite LaF and Perry with a sigh of relief. She’d missed the place.

“Oh, it’s good to be back,” Laura smiled, giving the table a tap. 

“So, how was it?” LaF asked, picking at their chicken wing leftovers.

Laura gave a little nod, “Good, it went well. Better than I expected and the party was pretty incredible.”

“And you didn’t get found out?” LaF said, giving Laura a look of surprise.

Laura shook her head, and then moved over, smiling at Carmilla as she sat in the booth beside her.

“Thanks,” Laura said, taking her drink from Carmilla.

“We’re completely believable, aren’t we Carm?” Laura grinned at her.

Carmilla stretched her arm along the booth behind her, “That we are, Cutie,” she gave Laura a wink and took a sip from her glass.

Laura couldn’t fight the blush as they gazed at each other.

LaFontaine cleared their throat. 

*

 Laura finished her drink, checking the time on her phone, 9.46…

She really needed to go home soon, she had to be up in the early hours for work, she looked across the booth at Perry and LaF as they conversed between themselves and then across to the bar to search for Carmilla.

Laura felt an unpleasant squirming in her stomach as she spotted Carmilla at the bar in conversation with a beautiful woman. Her hands traveled up to Carmilla’s waist and pulled her closer. Carmilla placed her hands on the tops of the woman arms and after a moment she took a step back.

Soon the woman turned on her heel and walked away, Carmilla stared off after her for moment and then grabbed her drink, wandering back over to the booth.

“Everything okay, Carm?” Laura asked, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer.

“Yeah of course, Cupcake, of course,” Carmilla said giving Laura a smile that didn’t seem quite so genuine.

“Who was that?” Laura couldn’t stop herself from asking, nodding in the direction of the bar.

Carmilla shook her head, “No one.”

“Wasn’t that SJ? I’m almost sure it was,” LaFontaine intervened.

Carmilla didn’t initially respond but threw LaF a tight smile and then gave a curt nod.

“Who’s SJ?” Laura asked, trying to sound unaffected, her fingers fidgeting under the table.

“She-” 

“One of Carm’s hookups,” LaF spoke before Carmilla had a chance.

Even though Laura had suspected who SJ might have been, it still came as a blow once she had received confirmation. 

“Oh,” Laura nodded slowly, her gaze shifting to the table as she tried to push down these unwanted feelings.  

“I have to go,” Laura said standing quickly, “I have work in the morning.”

Laura couldn’t bring herself to look at the others as she said goodbye, pulling on her coat as she hurried to leave. She took a gulp of cold air as she reached the street outside, shaking her head.

What was wrong with her? Carmilla is not your girlfriend! She yelled internally at herself, Carmilla can sleep with whomever she wants.

She hurried up the street as it began to rain, the quicker she got to be alone in her apartment the better.

“Laura, wait,” she felt a hand grip her arm just above the elbow.

She turned, Carmilla gave her a perfect smile as she pulled on her jacket. “Where’d you go? I could barely keep up with you.”

Laura shrugged, shoving her hands into the pockets of her coat, “Home, I have work…" 

“Are you okay?” Carmilla asked, taking a step closer.

 “Of course, I’m okay, I need to – I just had to go,” Laura said, taking a few steps in the direction of her apartment, Carmilla followed. 

“Cupcake, I, it's not what you think…” Carmilla said, trying to gauge Laura’s expression as she stared hard at the ground.

“ _What_ is not what I think?” Laura asked, stopping outside of her apartment building and turning to face Carmilla.

“SJ…” Carmilla frowned, “What LaF said? They were wrong, well no, they were right but it’s not like that." 

“Carm, it doesn’t matter to me what-” Laura began, shaking her head.

“I know that, but I just wanted you to know, I agreed I wouldn’t be seen with other women while we’re… doing this, so… I told her it was over.” Carmilla said, a little cautiously.

“I never asked you to that, Carmilla,” Laura said, taking the steps up to her building door. 

“Right but… I thought… are you sure you’re okay?” Carmilla asked, pushing her now rain soaked hair out of her face, following her up the steps.

 “ _I’m fine, Carmilla!_ ” Laura found herself yelling as her feelings overflowed and overwhelmed her.

Carmilla was silent for a few seconds and then gave Laura a curt nod, her face expressionless. She then took a step back and her gaze fell to the ground.

“Carm…?” Laura said, filling with instant regret.

Carmilla frowned at the ground.

“Carm, I’m s-”

Arms wrapped around her neck, Carmilla pulled Laura against her, her cold face hidden against Laura’s neck, making Laura shudder and return the hug, wrapping her arms around Carmilla’s waist as Carmilla’s fingers knotted in her hair making Laura squeeze her tighter as she enjoyed the feeling.

It was a full minute before Laura could even fathom anything other than hugging Carmilla and enjoying the feeling of Carmilla’s fingers rubbing on the back of her neck and when they did pull back, it was only by mere inches.

Carmilla’s eyes were intense as she studied Laura’s face, her hands still locked around her neck, Laura gripped the sides of Carmilla jacket tightly.

“Do you want to come up?” Laura heard herself whispering.

Carmilla’s eyes fell closed and she frowned in what looked like concentration, taking a breath, “I thought you had work…”

Laura tutted in frustration, she did indeed.

"Just for a little while?" Laura asked, nibbling on her lip as she waited for Carmilla's response.

Carmilla dropped an unexpected kiss on Laura's forehead, "You need sleep more than you need my company."

Laura wasn't sure whether that was true.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” she asked instead.

Carmilla nodded and released her hold on Laura.

Laura tried to smile, “Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight, Cupcake,” Carmilla said taking another step away down one of the steps and watched Laura disappear into her apartment building.

Laura breathed a sigh of relief in elevator and she’d only admit it to herself but she was considerably relieved, once she knew Carmilla wasn’t intending on slipping off to see a random hookup tonight… but feeling that relief made her angry at herself. 

She shook her head, feeling foolish, leaning her forehead against the elevator wall. The sooner things returned to normal, the better, pretending to date Carmilla was really messing with her head. 

*

 Laura awoke from her nap on the couch, her body clock was off now she had returned to work, the early mornings were harder when she could barely get a decent night’s sleep.

She glanced at the time, 2.37pm, she briefly wondered if anyone would be down at the bar, though she doubted it.

She decided on some lunch, getting up and heading for the kitchen just as her phone began to vibrate.

“Hi, Dad!” Laura smiled as she answered the phone.

“Laura, is there something you need to tell me?” Her dad said by way of a greeting.

She frowned, something to tell her dad?

“Err… Can’t think of anything Dad, what is it?” Laura said, taking her phone into the kitchen to check out the fridge.

“I thought you’d let me know you had a _girlfriend_?” Sherman said, sounding a little irritated.

“Huh?” Laura said, standing and allowing the fridge door fall closed.

“I just got off of the phone with a delightful woman who tells me _you_ are dating her daughter, who _happens_ to be Carmilla?!” Her dad revealed.

“Dad-”

“Why wouldn’t you tell me Laura? And it’s Carmilla as well, I _always_ liked her.”

Should she lie? Tell the truth? Would he tell Carmilla’s mom? Her father wouldn’t approve of any of this, she knew that.

Laura was glad she was on the phone as she didn’t think she’d get through this face to face.

“Yes,” she said through gritted teeth, “Carmilla is my girlfriend, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you dad. I just wanted to… be sure about her before I spoke to you.”

God, what is she doing? 

“I’m so happy for you, honey, I knew it! I knew you liked Carmilla! I feel pretty good about this one, you know.” Sherman said honestly. 

“You knew I liked Carmilla? What does that mean?” Laura asked, frowning.

“Oh, come on, Laura, you’ve never been that good at hiding your feelings, especially from me. I‘ve met all of your friends and I’ve seen what you’re like around her, I’m just glad she reciprocates your feelings.”

Laura was silent as she tried to digest her father’s words.

“You know, I need to come down for a visit, this is an excellent excuse, don’t you think?” Sherman asked.

Oh no! Crap! Crap! Crap!

“Dad, you’re just back from your honeymoon…” Laura stuttered.

“I’d love to show Rosie the city,” Sherman sounding a little day dreamy.

“Dad, I’m really busy with work at the moment,” Laura interrupted. 

“I’ll speak to Rose and we can come down for the weekend, I haven’t seen you in so long, Sweetheart,” Sherman said.

“Dad…Um… okay… I guess that sounds like fun,” Laura said, shaking her head as she spoke, she knew her father, she knew he was likely to show up whether or not she agreed.

“Fantastic! I’ll let you know, Sweetheart." 

“Okay, dad,” Laura grimaced.

“And talk to me next time! I want to know what’s going on in your life, Laura, I love you, okay?” Sherman said, happily, and Laura wanted to cry. 

*

 Laura practically ran into the bar, her eyes scanning the room for a familiar face, she turned to Mike the bartender.

“Mike, have you seen Carmilla today?” She asked, unable to keep the anger she felt out of her voice.

“Nope, sorry Laura, not seen any of your friends today, everything okay?” he asked with an edge of concern.

 She shook her head, “Yes, thank you,” she said, turning on her heel and exiting the bar pulling out her phone as she went.

“Cupcake, what do I owe the pleasure?” Carmilla answered the phone after a few seconds, her flirty tone making Laura feel angrier.

“Carm, where are you?” Laura seethed, raising her hand to hail a passing cab.

“At home, Laura, what’s wrong?” Carmilla asked, sounding concerned.

“Stay there, I’ll be there soon,” she responded, ending the call abruptly and jumping into the cab.

By the time Laura reached Carmilla’s lavish apartment building she was even more angry, recalling the conversation with her father the entire cab ride there.

She tried to calm herself in the elevator ride up but nothing seemed to work.

Carmilla answered the door almost as soon as Laura knocked, Laura tried not to stare at Carmilla’s tight leather pants.

 “What’s wrong, Cutie, you’re not being forced to wear that sweater, are you?” Carmilla smirked, leaning against the door.

Laura looked down at her attire, she was wearing her favorite elephant patterned sweater, she scowled at Carmilla whose smirk quickly disappeared.

“Carmilla, your mother… _is a psycho_!” she fumed, walking into the apartment.

 “What?” Carmilla looked at her confused, letting her apartment door fall closed.

“She spoke to my dad!” Laura yelled.

“She did what?” She frowned.

“She found my dad! She spoke to him on the phone! Carm, I had to lie to my-”

There was a knock on Carmilla’s door and Laura fell silent.

Neither of them moved, the knock came a second time.

Carmilla wandered back over to the door, glancing through the door viewer. 

“It’s my mom!” Carmilla whispered.

“Carmilla? I thought I heard yelling? Everything okay?” Lilita's muffled voice called from the other side.

After a moment to prepare herself Carmilla opened the door and Lilita came sauntering right in.

“Laura’s here, how delightful!” she beamed, “Laura, how are you, dear? Not interrupting anything, am I?” She said with a wink.

“Mom!” Camilla frowned with disgust.

“What? Oh, to be young and in love, I envy you both,” she smiled, sitting on the couch and making herself comfortable.

 “Mom, please st-”

 “Oh, Laura, that sweater is just darling!” Lilita said, patting the couch next to her.

Laura and Carmilla eyes met, Laura almost smiled.

 “Thank you, Mrs Karnstein,” Laura said politely, taking a seat on the couch. 

“Please, call me-" 

“Mom, are you insane?” Carmilla interrupted angrily.

“What? It’s a nice sweater,” Lilita responded, raising an eyebrow.

“No, not that, _you_! Talking to Laura’s dad! That's not-” Carmilla said pointing a finger at her mother.

“What’s wrong with that? That’s part of the reason  I came over, what a lovely man your father is Laura, really,” Lilita said, giving Laura’s arm a small tap. 

Laura felt suddenly a little better about it all, probably down to all of Lilita’s compliments.

“Tea dear, could you?” Lilita looked toward Carmilla.

Carmilla glared for a moment before walking over to her kitchen area, giving her mother cross looks as she started to make the tea.

“You know, Carmilla, I’m a friendly lady, I like to build bridges...” Lilita practically sang her words.

“Mom, that’s not what you do! How’d you even- Where’d you get his number?” Carmilla said, wielding a small spoon. 

Laura had been wondering that same thing. 

“Well, it’s actually an interesting story,” Lilita said with a sly smile.

Carmilla sighed, mumbling something Laura couldn’t quite catch as she banged a cupboard closed.

“Your father,” she looked at Laura, “actually met his wife through my dating agency, _MatchMaker_ , would you believe that?” She did a sort of jazz hands movement and then accepted the tea from Carmilla.

“Thank you, Carmilla. Laura, I hope it’s okay, I really didn’t mean to over step,” Lilita gave Laura a sad frown, the same frown that Carmilla would give her.

Carmilla handed Laura her own cup of tea to her surprise.

 “Thanks, Carm.”

“No problem, Cutie,” Carmilla responded, placing a comforting hand on Laura’s shoulder and giving her an apologetic look.

“It’s fine, Mrs Karnstein,” Laura said with a small nod.

“Please call me Lilita,” she said, sipping her tea. “How is everything, ladies?”

“We’re fine, Mom,” Carmilla replied, quickly.

 “Oh, Laura, I’ve meaning to watch your show, how exciting being on the tv! I’ve been on few times myself, events and occasions that sort of thing.” Lilita said proudly.

“Well it’s just Silas News, it’s not… really, it’s of kind of a joke if I’m honest,” Laura shrugged.

“No, I feel like my daughters dating a celebrity!”

Laura wanted to roll her eyes.

“Trust me, _Carmilla_ is more famous than I am.” Laura said with a blush.

“You enjoy it, Carmilla?” Lilita looked toward her daughter.

Carmilla stood a foot away from Laura, apparently refusing to sit.

“Never miss it,” Carmilla said with a tight smile. 

“We should have that spar day together,” Lilita nodded at them. 

“No, Mother, Laura is very busy, I told you-” Carmilla said hastily.

“What about, now stay calm,” Lilita said, carefully placing down her tea, “… a couple’s photoshoot!” She exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

Carmilla laughed, at least Laura thought she was laughing, it could have been crying.

“I think it’s still a little early in our relationship for that sort of … thing,” Laura said, trying to force a laugh.

Laura thought Carmilla might actually be losing her mind as she wandered back over to the kitchen area and leant against the counter.

“Maybe in a few months’ time, hey? We must go to dinner next week?” 

“Mother, actually me and Laura have plans this evening that we need to get ready for so if you don’t mind,” Carmilla moved quickly across the large room and grabbed the door handle, she’d obviously had enough. 

“Where are you going?” Lilita asked with interest, as she stood.

“Dinner,” Carmilla spoke hurriedly, holding open the apartment door.

“Where?” Lilita asked.

“Come on now mother,” Carmilla urged, gesturing to the door. 

“I’ll see you both very soon! Carmilla let me know when you’re both free!”

“Bye Mom,” Carmilla said, almost slamming the door behind her 

They were both silent for 10 seconds, listening for any sound, Carmilla leant against the closed door and ran a hand over her face.

“Carm, your mom is out of her mind,” Laura said quietly.

“I can’t control anything she does, Laura,” Carmilla said, walking over to the couch.

“I had to lie to my father,” Laura stated.

“I’m sorry,” Carmilla said, running a hand through her hair and landing heavily on the couch beside her.

“He’s happy for me Carmilla, _he’s happy_!” Laura complained.

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Carmilla gave a little shrug.

“Its lies! It’s all lies! And he’s coming to visit me! He wants to see _us,”_ Laura said, leaning her head back on the couch, giving up.

She heard Carmilla release a breath and they were both silent for a few moments.

“I’m sorry about all of this, Laura, I didn’t know she was going to do that, my mother she’s very- When is your dad visiting?” Carmilla asked.

Laura shrugged, “I don’t know yet, he said he’d let me know,” she sipped the remains of her tea slowly.

After a few more minutes of silence, Laura reached for the remote and switched on Carmilla’s huge TV, her eyes squinting a little as the screen came to life. 

She flicked through the stations, glancing at Carmilla every few seconds as she lay with her eyes closed. She landed on a news channel and listened for a moment or so.

Laura smiled as an idea came to her, she glanced quickly at Carmilla as she searched for her own show.

“Hey! You DVRed my show!” Laura exclaimed, when she saw the time slot already set to record.

Carmilla’s eyes opened abruptly, “Yeah um… I wanted to, now that we’re… doing this.” She stood, grabbing the empty cups and moving off to the kitchen.

“So, you’ve been watching?” Laura asked, standing to follow her.

Carmilla shrugged as she moved around her kitchen.

“How am I?” Laura asked, suddenly eager to hear Carmilla’s opinion. No one ever watched her show.

Carmilla paused and glanced at her and then she smiled, walking over and placing her hands on the tops of Laura’s arm, “You’re impeccable… charming… delightful… delectable,” she smiled, choosing each word slowly and specifically.

“Carm, are you describing me or a pastry?” Laura asked blushing under Carmilla’s intense stare.

“What’s the difference?”  Carmilla smirked.

Laura huffed a laugh, keeping her eyes on Carmilla, contemplating her words. She wanted to ask whether Carmilla was implying that she was edible but thought better of it.

“Come on, let’s go to the bar, I need a drink… or several,” Carmilla said, moving toward the door and holding her hand out for Laura to grasp.


	6. Dangerous Behaviour

“2 weeks?” Laura almost groaned into the phone, she raked her hair away from her face, dropping down heavily onto her bed.

“Yes, Honey, aren’t you excited?” Sherman’s warm voice replied.

In any other circumstances Laura would have been delighted but right now… not so much. She shook her head, frowning. “Of course, dad,” she lied, “Um… for how long will you be visiting?”

“Just a few days, I’m going to show Rosie around the city.”

“That sounds great,” Laura chewed her lip, unable to sound enthusiastic anymore.

Laura usually looked forward to her father’s visits, she rarely got to see her dad but… she wasn’t sure she could lie to him. Her Dad was thrilled about her and Carmilla’s new found relationship and Laura feared her father would see right through her.

Laura sulked as she made her way back into the living room where she had been watching tv with LaF and Perry.

“Oh, hi guys,” Laura greeted Danny and Kirsch as they removed their coats.

“You okay, Laura?” Danny asked, with an edge of concern.

“Yes, I’m good,” Laura nodded, forcing a smile on her face.

“Not down at the bar tonight, guys?” Kirsch said, slouching into the seat next to the couch. 

“We were just watching tv,” LaF said with a little shrug. “I’m sure we’ll head down at some point.”

“You’re looking well, Danny,” Perry said, trying to make more room on the couch, shuffling up closer next to LaFontaine so Danny could sit.

“Thanks, Per,” Danny grinned as took her seat, “You sure you’re okay, Laura?”

Laura gave a little dismiss wave, “It’s nothing important, really.”

“So, I was thinking, you know what we haven’t done in a while,” Kirsch said, looking around at all of them.

Laura regarded him for a moment and then shrugged, taking a seat on the other small armchair. 

“Go out somewhere _other_ than the bar,” Kirsch added, with a glance at everyone.

A moment of silence followed his statement.

“Huh?” LaF raised an eyebrow as if Kirsch had spoken in some foreign tongue.

“What?” Laura said at the same time.

“ _Guys_ , there’s more places to go in this city other than _McGee’s_ , let’s go out somewhere different tonight,” Kirsch said, with a confident nod.

“Tonight?” Perry grimaced and seemed to sink further into the couch.

“Yeah, why not?” Danny agreed, with a nod, “I’m down, it has been a while.”

There was a knock on the apartment door and then Carmilla appeared, she glanced warily at everyone, obviously not expecting to see the whole crowd.

“Please don’t tell me this is some sort of intervention,” Carmilla said, walking around the room and taking a seat on the arm of Laura’s chair. 

Laura huffed a laugh, “No, Kirsch was just suggesting we all go out tonight... somewhere _different_.” She gestured to him, trying her hardest not to stare at Carmilla’s thighs as her leather pants stretched tightly over them right in her face.

“I’m all for it,” LaF suddenly spoke up, “Sounds like a good time.”

“Yesssss,” Kirsch fist pumped the air.

“For a change, I suppose,” Perry nodded but still didn’t look too eager.

“So, what about it? Laura... Carm?” Kirsch said looking in their direction, all eyes suddenly on her.

 “Erm... sure... why not?” Laura gave a small shrug, “Let’s do it.”

 At Laura’s words, the group seemed to take that as confirmation that the plan was a go and jumped into action, everyone moving to stand. 

“Bar first though?” Danny asked as she grabbed her coat.

“For sure,” Laura spoke at the same time as LaF and Kirsch.

“Carm, are you coming?” Laura asked, turning to her as everyone else moved toward the door.

Carmilla stood and gave her a small smile and a nod, “Someone needs to keep an eye on you, Cupcake. I certainly can’t trust these guys to do it.”

“ _Hey_ , I don’t need any eyes on me!” Laura responded quickly and then frowned as she heard her words. “Okay, that didn’t come out right but you know what I mean,” she said, shaking her head.

Carmilla smiled, “Do you remember what happened the last time we went out somewhere _other than the bar_?”

Laura thought for a second and then shook her head, glancing in the direction of the door as it closed leaving them alone. 

“St Patricks Day? Last year?” Carmilla raised an eyebrow, taking a small step closer.

 “Oh…” Laura said as realisation seemed to dawn. “Well, me and LaF drank all of that fireball that night.”

“You went missing for an hour,” Carmilla stated, “…And you lost your phone so we couldn’t find you and then-" 

“ _Okay, fine_ , it was a bad night,” Laura said, silencing Carmilla. “We need to talk.”

“You breaking up with me, Cupcake?” Carmilla smirked, raising a perfect eyebrow.

“No,” Laura replied quickly, “My dad is coming to visit in two weeks.”

Carmilla seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, “Okay,” she smiled.

“Are you not…concerned at all?” Laura asked, starting to wring her hands together.

“No… Why would I be?” Carmilla shrugged, placing her hands-on top of Laura’s to calm her agitation.

“What if he figures it out? I can’t lie to my Dad, once when I was a kid I took…”

“Cupcake, he _already believes_ , we don’t have to convince him of anything.”

“But what if he finds out? What if he tells your mom? What if-” Laura sucked in a stressed breath.

“We’ve got this,” Carmilla squeezed her hands and gave Laura a convincing smile. “Stop worrying so much okay?”

Laura gave a little nod, was it the lighting in here or did Carmilla look like extra attractive right now?

“Let’s go, the good seats in the booth will be gone,” Carmilla said, turning Laura to face the doorway and placing her hands on her shoulders. 

*

 “So, the prompter just goes completely dead and my notes are all over the place and I literally have nothing to say and Mark, the camera guy just shrugs, so I’m sitting there… the silence is _ringing out_ and this _live tv_! Then, all I hear in my ear is… _fill… fill until we can get the prompter working_ … so …” Laura pauses her story as she feels her face heating up, she sipped her beer.

Everyone at the booth is gripped by Laura’s story. 

“Laura, what happened?” Danny was sitting on a chair she has pulled over to the table, she leant closer with a chuckle.

“No one watches the damn show, so it doesn’t matter _but_ …” Laura paused again.

“I’m certainly going to watch _this one_!” LaF intervened. “What happened, L?”

“I shouldn’t have said anything, I’ve just realized I’ll never live this down.” Laura shook her head. 

“I know what happened…” Carmilla sipped from her glass and gave everyone a knowing smile. 

“You _do not_ -” Laura glanced sideways at Carmilla in the booth. 

“I watch the show, you know I do,” Carmilla shrugged.

“Why haven’t you mentioned it already then?” Laura frowned. “It’s only the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to me on live tv!”

“Really? You think it was worse than that time you tripped over that bench?” Carmilla smiled at her.

Laura’s face dropped, “No, _none of you knew about that_!” 

“Oh, _I knew,_ I watch it when I’m feeling down,” Carmilla said reminiscently.

“Wait, _wait a sec_! You tripped over on _live tv_ and we never knew about it!?” LaF was scrambling, searching their pockets. “Is it on YouTube!?” 

“ _I hope not_!” Laura yelled, trying to reach across the booth to grab LaF’s phone.

They stood lifting their phone into the air.

 “Well, what happened?” Perry asked, “When the prompter went down? What did you do?”

Laura relaxed back into her seat with a sigh, “This is all your fault,” she frowned at Carmilla.

“Hey, you were telling them the story, not me,” Carmilla frowned, taking a sip from her glass. 

“Not the falling over thing! No one was _ever_ going to find out about that. I’ll never see the end of this!” Laura scowled at Carmilla. 

“What the hell happened?!” Kirsch intervened, from his seat on the other end of the table. 

“Oh, I found it!” LaF yelled, they stared at their phone for a moment and then howled with laughter, sitting down heavily in the booth as they struggled to breathe.

Laura allowed her head to fall onto the table as the rest of the group become overcome with laughter as they watched the clip. Laura could hear her voice repeated over and over again as they watched it repeatedly, “And now over to- _ah!_ ”

“Okay, okay, let’s all just-” Perry started to say but couldn’t hold more laughter back as the clip was played again. 

Laura felt a hand on her shoulder, Carmilla’s hand, she shrugged it off, not daring to lift her flushed face away from the table top.

“What’s so funny?” Laura heard Mike the bartender ask as he approached the booth.

“ _That’s enough_ , put the phone away,” Carmilla said seriously and the laughter died down quickly.

“Laura, Dear, it’s okay, we’re all over it now,” Perry said.

Laura lifted her head and saw LaF struggling to hold back laughter and Danny was looking in the opposite direction.

“I’m sorry, L but that may be one of the funniest things I have _ever seen_ ,” LaF said, pushing their floppy hair away from their face.

“Thanks,” Laura said, giving everyone at the table a cold smile.

“So, what the hell did you do?” Kirsch said.

 “I got back up and carried on,” Laura said with a sigh.

“No, when the prompter went out?” Kirsch said finishing his beer. 

“Oh, I- I-” She didn’t want to finish this story anymore. “Well… I- I started to sing.”

“No?!” LaF cried in delight, “That sounds even funnier!”

“Is that on YouTube!?” Danny asked, reaching for her own phone. 

“What did you sing?” Perry asked.

“What _did_ you sing?” LaF paused looking up from their phone.

Laura didn’t respond for a moment and then quietly murmured, “A thousand miles.” 

“A thousand miles!? _Vanessa Carlton’s, A Thousand Miles_?!” LaF beamed. 

“I’m going to the bar,” Laura said, moving away from the booth as quickly as possible, she had no doubt that video would be on YouTube and she couldn’t sit through listening to all that play out again.

She leant on the bar, ordered herself another beer. “You feeling steady on your feet?” Mike said as he placed the bottle down.

“Don’t start,” Laura said as howls of laughter started to echo around the bar from their booth.

“God, I hope someone makes a remix of this!” She heard LaFontaine yell.

 “Cupcake, what did you honestly expect them to do?” Carmilla approached, leaning on the bar and watching the remaining four at the booth start laughing again as they replayed the footage.

“I’m not speaking to you,” Laura said, turning her head away and sipping her beer.

She heard Carmilla make a tut like sound, “Did you think they wouldn’t have found out eventually?”

“Not if you hadn’t told them,” Laura replied, she wasn’t even _that_ angry with Carmilla, she just wanted to see how she’d react.

“You were telling them about the prompter!” Carmilla replied, folding her arms, exasperated.

Laura turned and gave her an attempt at a scowl that just made Carmilla smile. Laura shook her head moving back toward the booth before she melted in Carmilla’s presence.

 “So,” Laura said as she slid back into the booth, “Where exactly are we going tonight?”

 “How about _Club 307_? We only ever went there like once,” Kirsch said, looking around at the group.

 “No, I can’t go back there after the fire alarm incident.” LaF said, quickly. “What about _Silas_? The music’s always good there.”

 “I hate it there, it’s too small, smaller than this place, and it smells like feet,” Danny frowned.

 “Part of the charm,” LaF said fondly.

 Laura was beginning to remember why they never went out anywhere other than the bar.

“We should go to _The Lustig_.” Carmilla suggested, relaxing into her seat next to Laura.

“I’ve heard about _The Lustig_ , it new, right?” Danny responded.

 “We can’t go there, we’d never get in. You have to be on the guest list,” Kirsch said with a shake of his head.

 “Well that won’t be a problem, I can get us in,” Carmilla said, taking a swig of her whiskey.

 The group stared at Carmilla for a moment before she noticed, “My brother, William, owns _The Lustig_.”

 “Sorry, your brother _owns The Lustig_ and you never thought to mention that?” LaF eyed Carmilla.

 “It never came up until just now,” Carmilla shrugged, pulling out her phone and leaving the booth.

 “The Lustig, it is!” Kirsch said, excitedly, finishing his beer.

 Laura stood, pulling on her jacket and everyone started towards the exit. 

“Might want to watch where you’re going there, Laura,” Danny said from behind her.

“Hilarious guys,” Laura said as the others began to laugh.

*

 “Are you really mad at me?” Carmilla said with a cute smile as Laura climbed into the cab.

Laura couldn’t stop herself from smiling and chose to just nod and try to fix a serious expression on her face.

Carmilla raised a perfect eyebrow, “Somehow I don’t think-”

“Bunch up, I’m in with you,” Danny intervened suddenly, sliding into the back of the cab so Laura found herself wedged between Carmilla and Danny.

There was a moment of silence as the cab pulled away and then Danny spoke, “Laura, I’m sorry about what happened at the bar, maybe we went a little too-”

“You’re sorry now,” Carmilla interrupted, glaring across the car at Danny. 

“No, it’s fine, guys it’s… I’d have been the same if it was one of you guys and it _was_ pretty funny,” Laura said, smiling and giving Danny’s knee a friendly tap.

“What’s that? Doesn’t really seem like your kinda thing,” Danny said, her fingers landing on Laura’s wrist where Carmilla’s gift still gleamed. 

“Oh um… it’s from Carm,” Laura said, turning the bracelet around her wrist, she always found herself smiling when she caught a glimpse of it.

“You bought that for her?” Danny leant forward in her seat and gave Carmilla a frown of confusion.

Carmilla’s looked slightly taken aback “I didn’t realize it had anything to do with-”

Laura intervened, “ _Actually_ , it’s all a part of our fake relationship _thing_ … it’s was a gift for her _girlfriend._ ”

“Is that still a _thing_ that’s happening?” Danny said, frowning at the two of them.

“Have you got a problem with that?” Carmilla asked, glaring in Danny’s direction.

Laura turned to scowl at Carmilla, who met Laura’s gaze and then turned away to stare out of her passenger side window.

“I just figured after new year’s, you’d just give it all up,” Danny said, picking a piece of lint off of her dark jeans. 

“We can’t really do that, we’re in a little too deep at this point,” Laura said, not enjoying the sudden awkward tension.

“Yeah, well I wouldn’t have bothered if it had been me,” Danny said, casually.

“What’s your problem?” Carmilla said, turning to glare at Danny again.

“ _My problem_ is that you _dragged_ Laura into this _ridiculous situation_ and she’s obviously too kind to say _no_!” Danny said angrily.

“Do you have the _slightest_ idea-” Carmilla fumed. 

“Danny, _I_ agreed to this and _I’m_ happy to do it. _Are we almost there??”_ Laura wanted nothing more than to be out of this cab. 

“Almost,” Carmilla murmured, focusing her attention on her passenger side window. 

The rest of the car journey passed by in silence and Laura breathed a sigh of relief once they reached _The Lustig,_ hurrying over to the others who were waiting. 

Carmilla wandered right over to the entrance and to Laura’s surprise, they skipped the queue and were allowed right on through.

“I feel like a famous person,” LaF whispered as they were taken through the club to their very own table.

The club was loud, crowded, the flashing lights were slightly nauseating and Laura definitely didn’t feel drunk enough for this kind of atmosphere.

Perry clutched her purse close to her chest as if she thought it may be snatched from her at any moment.

They all looked a little out of place apart from LaF who nodded their head to the generic beat which filled the room. Laura would give anything to be back at the bar right now. 

She grabbed Carmilla’s wrist and pulled her away from the group as they started to take their seats at the reserved booth.

“What was _that_ all about?” Laura glared, forced to speak loudly over the noise of the club.

“You tell me, Laura, obviously Danny has an issue with me.” Carmilla argued, pushing her hair away from her face.

“She’s our friend, she’s just-”

“She’s _your_ friend,” Carmilla pointed, “Is it true? That I _dragged_ you into this because I thought that-

“Carm, she doesn’t _understand_ , she just… I think she was just worried about me, she doesn’t know anything!” Laura shook her head. “ _You_ didn’t have to act so defensive!”

“So, what, are you siding with her?” Carmilla yelled over the noise.

“ _Siding with her? Oh my god, are you twelve_?” Laura argued.

Carmilla opened her mouth as if she were going to respond and then paused, she was quiet for moment, “I need a drink.”

 “Me too,” she agreed and Laura followed Carmilla as she moved toward the bar.

 “Carm!? Laura!?” Came a somewhat familiar voice.

 “ _William?_ What are you…?” Carmilla looked at him, surprised to see him.

 “Hello ladies, enjoying yourselves?” He smiled warmly, sliding his hands into his dark suit pant pockets. “More drinks? Champagne? What would you like?”

 “No champagne, thanks,” Laura said quickly, she’d had her fill of champagne to last a lifetime.

 Carmilla smiled slightly and then turned back to her brother, “You’re here? I didn’t think you’d actually _be here_ ,” she said, giving this arm a tap.

 “Well, I do own the place,” William said, looking around proudly.

 “What do you think?” He yelled over the music.

“It’s great!” Laura gave an awkward thumbs up.

 Carmilla smiled at her and pulled Laura close to her side.

 “Where are you sitting? I’ll bring over some shots!” William grinned.

 Carmilla pointed, “And I’ll have a large whiskey… and a beer.”

 William nodded and disappeared into the crowd.

 “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that William would actually be here,” Carmilla said as they made their way back to their booth.

 “It’s fine, it’s no problem,” Laura shrugged.

 “I know, it just means we have to, you know, pretend-”

 “I don’t mind, Carm,” Laura said with a small shrug.

 Laura really didn’t mind, she enjoyed playing Carmilla’s girlfriend, maybe a little more than she should but she didn’t let herself think too much about that.

 “Wow, why’d you never take us here before?” LaF said, as they joined the circular booth.

 “I much prefer the bar, LaF,” Carmilla said, eyeing up the alcohol on the table.

 “Agreed,” Perry nodded.

 “Who bought all the prosecco?” Carmilla asked, picking up one of the three bottles.

 “It was free!” LaF beamed.

 “Where did Danny and Kirsch go?” Laura asked, glancing around the crowds.

“They went to the bar,” LaF responded.

 “Here we go!” William yelled as he joined their table and placed down a massive tray of different colored shots. “And a whiskey and a beer.” He winked at Laura.

 “Thanks,” Laura blushed a little.

 “Woah!” LaF gleamed at the tray.

“Help yourselves!” he yelled.

“William, you remember my friend, LaF, this is there girlfriend Perry who is Laura’s roommate.” Carmilla said. 

“Of course, LaF, it’s been a while,” William said, shaking their hand across the table. 

Three beers, a glass of prosecco and 4 shots later, Laura giggled as she watched LaF and Perry dancing out in the middle of the dance floor. Perry though enjoying herself somehow still managed to look very uncomfortable. Kirsch and Danny were in there somewhere and Carmilla had disappeared some time ago.

“Come dance with us!” LaF yelled drunkenly. 

Laura shook her head, she was very drunk but she still had some sense.

“Come on!” Perry called.

Laura rolled her eyes and drank the small amount of beer that remained in her bottle, she stood from their table she had been leaning on, slightly wobbly on her feet.

“Are you sure actually? You might fall,” LaF said as she joined them, laughing loudly at their own comment.

Laura couldn’t help but laugh either as she started to dance, suddenly feeling a little like a third wheel next to LaF and Perry.

“How long was I gone, Cupcake?” Carmilla appeared beside her, speaking close to her ear, “You’re usually extremely drunk before you even _consider_ dancing.”

“Carm, where did you go?” Laura grinned, feeling relieved but she wasn’t sure why.

“Nowhere in particular,” Carmilla smiled back, sliding her hand into Laura’s and pulling her to a less crowded part of the dance floor. “Are you still mad at me?”

“Yes,” Laura smiled. 

Carmilla pulled her bottom lip between her teeth almost as if the idea intrigued her, “About the thing from the bar or the Danny thing?”

 Carmilla played with their connected fingers.

“Both,” Laura grinned.

 “You’re not mad at me,” Carmilla smirked, her eyebrow raising.

“Yes, actually I am,” Laura responded, thumping Carmilla’s shoulder playfully.

“I’m sorry,” Carmilla said unexpectedly.

It made Laura stop and consider her for a few seconds.

“Carm…” she swallowed, “I never- you don’t have too- It’s totally fine,” she could feel her face heating up.

“Good, so…” Carmilla planted a kiss on Laura’s forehead.

“Have you two declared your love yet?” William asked, he had been watching as he leant on the table next to them.

“Declared _what?_ ” Laura asked.

Carmilla looked a little taken aback by the question, glancing between the two of them.

“Come on… really? You two are trying a make me puke, with all the heart eyes and the caressing,” William rolled his eyes, sipping from his glass.

Laura wasn’t quite sure how to handle this situation, “Um… do you… love me, Carm?”

Why did she say that? Crap… She should always let Carm take the lead.

“Of course,” Carmilla shrugged completely at ease now apparently, “Don’t you love me, Cupcake?”

Laura blushed as Carmilla stared at her, she nodded slowly, “Well- I-I- Yes, sure, I– I… love you.”

Laura cleared her throat and then Carmilla dropped a kiss on her cheek. 

“Calm down, Cutie,” she whispered. 

“If you’ll allow me to intervene…” Perry was smiling at the two of them, Laura hadn’t notice her join them.

Carmilla’s head snapped in Perry’s direction and Laura tensed. Was she about to give them up?

“I _always_ thought that Carmilla had a thing for Laura _loonnng_ before they started dating,” Perry smiled almost mischievously, she was a little more drunk than Laura could remember seeing her in the recent history.

A moment of silence, “Is that really a surprise?” Carmilla shrugged it off. 

William chuckled, “Carm, did you pine for little Laura?”

“ _Hey!_ ” Laura gave William a little glare and placed a hand on Carmilla’s cheek so she would look at her, “I may have had a thing for you too, Carm,” she said, planting a kiss of her own on Carmilla’s cheek.

“You did?” Carmilla smiled warmly at her.

Laura gave a small nod, getting lost in her eyes. God, Carmilla was playing her part well.

Carmilla’s cheek, warm against her hand, she leant in a fraction and Carmilla glanced down at her lips.

Oh, what the hell, it’s just a kiss, she thought as she leaned in. 

Carmilla’s hand gripped her waist as their lips met in what may have been an unexpected kiss.

Laura couldn’t bring herself to pull away just yet and stood on her tippy toes to bring herself closer, enjoying the kiss.

The few small kisses they had already shared paled in comparison to this.

When they pulled away Laura cleared her throat and blushed as Carmilla smiled almost nervously and pulled her lower lip into her mouth.

Laura had to remind herself once again that it was all just an act, she was playing a dangerous game here, maybe she’d had a drink too many.

Perry smiled at them and danced, bopping her head along to the beat of the music.

“Do you wanna… dance?” Laura asked.

“Usually no, but I seem to be unable to deny you anything,” Carmilla said with a look of happy acceptance.

They found LaF, Kirsch and Danny on the dance floor and Laura felt a tad foolish as they started to dance, moreover because she wasn’t very good at it, she just allowed her drunken body to move to the beat of the music and Carmilla twirled her around every now and then, which reminded her of the time they spent together on Christmas Day. 

“Woah,” Laura laughed as she lost her footing and Carmilla caught her quickly and pulled her close. 

“I got you, Cupcake,” she smiled and Laura nodded, enjoying the closeness probably much more than she should, leaning in and meeting Carmilla’s lips once again with her own, her hands playing with the ends of Carmilla’s hair.

“You smell so good,” Laura mumbled, not giving Carmilla the chance to respond as she kissed her again. 

“You know, Carmilla you are like-” Laura began.

“-the perfect woman?” Carmilla ran the tip of her finger along Laura’s jaw.

“Yes… Have I told you that before?” Laura chewed her lip.

 “You may have mentioned it once or twice,” Carmilla confirmed, pushing a strand of Laura’s hair behind her ear. “…And it’s usually at the point where you need to go home.”

 “No, _you_ need to go home,” Laura tried her best to look annoyed.

 Carmilla smiled and shook her head and then looked up and around the club. “I just need to say goodbye to William.” 

*

 “It’s cold,” Laura started to shiver as they wandered down the street away from _The Lustig_.

“It is winter, Cupcake,” Carmilla responded, releasing her hand.

“We need to hail a cab,” Laura said, glancing down the street.

 “Actually, my place is just around the corner,” Carmilla said with a half shrug as she removed her jacket.

 “Oh,” Laura felt a little upset that their night might be suddenly coming to an end. “Okay, I guess I’ll just catch a cab on my own.”

 “Or you could come back to my place with me… if you wanted to,” Carmilla said, holding out her jacket for Laura to take.

 “I’d… like that,” Laura said, gazing at Carmilla for a second, “Wont you be cold?”

 “My apartment is literally right over there, I won’t really have the opportunity to get cold,” Carmilla said, opening the jacket for Laura to slip on.

 “Thanks,” she murmured, grabbing Carmilla’s hand as they moved on down the street.

 “So,” Carmilla cleared her throat, “All that kissing back there… was that okay?”

 “Erm… Of course, Carm, it's- I mean a kiss is just a kiss, right? It doesn’t mean anything,” Laura mumbled quickly.

“Right,” Carmilla nodded, “It doesn’t.”

 “I _enjoy_ kissing and I _enjoy_ kissing _you_ , it’s no big deal,” Laura blurted, why was she saying these things?

 "I also enjoyed… the kissing,” Carmilla said glancing at Laura quickly and then down at the ground as they walked.

 “That’s good,” Laura nodded, “Otherwise this whole girlfriend thing would be…” She met Carmilla’s gaze and they paused, she sucked in a breath. “We should probably…”

 Laura leaned closer as Carmilla’s gaze dropped to her lips, they gazed at each other for another second before Carmilla’s lips found hers. Laura leaned closer, her hand landing on Carmilla’s neck. Carmilla slanted to the side, making a pleasant _hmm_ sound as she deepened the kiss.

 Laura sucked in a husky breath, her eyes remaining closed for a few seconds after Carmilla pulled away. Wow…

“See… just a kiss,” Laura swallowed, her face heating up.

“Just a kiss,” Carmilla whispered, Laura watched her tongue run over her lower lip. 

“Um... this- this way,” Carmilla said, starting up the street again. 

*

 “Let me just…” Carmilla said as they entered her dark apartment, she walked around the room, switching on the smaller lamps rather than the overhead lights.

 Laura wandered over to the balcony doors, touching the glass as she tried to take in the view without seeing her own reflection staring back at her.

 “Here,” Carmilla said, sliding open the door about half way and then she wandered over the couch, sliding off her jacket.

 “Can I get you anything?” She called over as Laura stared out at the city below her, not quite stepping out onto the balcony, a little too chilly for that.

 “No actually, I’m okay,” Laura responded when Carmilla appeared by her side.

 “You sure, it doesn’t have to be- I have tea or… I don’t think I have cocoa,” Carmilla thought for a moment and then gave a little shrug.

 “Well, you should get some,” Laura smiled.

 “I do have something for you though,” Carmilla said, turning and heading back over to the kitchen area as Laura slid the door closed and headed over to the couch.

 Carmilla returned with a box of cookies in hand.

“Ooh cookies, why?” Laura smiled but gave Carmilla a confused glance.

“I promised I would get you cookies, don’t you remember?” Carmilla said, dropping down next to her.

Laura huffed a laugh, “I do, Carm… that’s sweet, they are a couple of weeks too late but that doesn’t really matter.”

“ _Hey_ ,” Carmilla knocked their shoulders together and Laura giggled.

“Carm…”

“Yes, Cupcake?” Carmilla said, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her knees 

“About earlier, with Danny…” Laura watched Carmilla’s body stiffen and she looked up at her.

“I- I…” Laura stumbled on her words.

“I’d forgotten about it, actually,” Carmilla shook her head a little. Laura wondered whether Carmilla was lying to make her feel better.

“I wasn’t taking her side-” 

“Laura, I know you and Danny have history and there may still be some _feelings_ there but that has nothing to do with me-”

 “ _No, no_ , there are definitely no feelings  _at all_ … for Danny I mean! I have zero feelings for Danny, none at all… in case… in case you were wondering about that. And, I think, maybe, she was possibly, slightly, _a little_ … aggressive earlier.” Laura said, meeting Carmilla’s gaze as she finished rambling.

 Carmilla smiled and huffed a laugh, “I think maybe she was right though.”

 “About what?”

 “You’re too good a person, Laura. You’re too kind, you’re doing this for me even though this situation doesn’t benefit you at all, in fact it’s nothing but a pain for you.”

 “Carm, how many times- I’m happy to do it! I want to.”

 “You’re happy to pretend to want to be with me? You’re happy to lie to your father next month?”

 Laura didn’t respond as Carmilla’s words washed over her.

“Look, maybe we should just end this now, you can tell your father the truth and I’ll just face up to my mother. I never should have asked you to do this,” Carmilla said, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Do you remember that conversation we had that night outside my apartment, a couple days before Christmas?” Laura asked, staring at her knees.

Carmilla sighed and frowned as she thought back, “You mean when you were all sad and drunk and you told me how bored you were of your life?” 

“Yes… Well, the last month or so has been some of the most fun, exciting times I’ve had for so long and well… it’s all because of you, Carm,” Laura could feel herself blushing. “So, if you’re asking me whether I still wanna do this then, yes, I’m definitely not backing out now.”

Carmilla was silent for a moment.

“You are honestly more than I deserve in a friend,” Carmilla said, taking a deep breath and giving Laura’s knee a squeeze.

“Don’t say that,” Laura responded, grabbing Carmilla’s hand, “I think you’re perfect.”

There was a moment of silence as Carmilla seemed to digest her words and Laura wondered if maybe she had said too much.

When Carmilla finally spoke, it was so quiet that Laura almost missed it, “Thank you, Laura.”

Their eyes met and Laura wanted to say something more but she couldn’t speak, Carmilla was staring at her with such intensity that Laura could do nothing but stare back. Carmilla’s hand which Laura was still holding gripped hers a little tighter causing Laura to look down at their hands, releasing a breath as she did so.

“Look, are you sure you don’t want a drink or anything?” Carmilla said, releasing Laura’s hand, clearing her throat and running a hand through her hair.

Laura shook her head to clear it as she felt she had completely now sobered up. She needed to leave now before she did something completely stupid like kiss Carmilla again and mess everything up. She’d probably already said too much.

 “No, actually, I probably should have gotten that cab home to be honest…” Laura rubbed the palm of her hand on her knee. “I’ll just take my cookies and go, I guess.”

“ _No_ , I mean, you could stay,” Carmilla said, straightening up a little.

 “I- I… could stay… but I can’t,” Laura said, standing suddenly.

 “You can’t,” Carmilla repeated with a nod, getting to her feet also.

 Laura sucked in a breath, “I don’t wanna out stay my welcome, right?” Laura forced a laugh, gesturing to the door.

 “That’s impossible, Cupcake,” Carmilla smiled, following Laura to the door.

 Laura turned, lingered at the door. They should hug or something, right? Just a hug, a hug was no big deal. She took a step closer and slowly wrapped her arms around Carmilla’s waist, resting her head on her shoulder.

 Laura closed her eyes, Carmilla’s embrace was warm, she didn’t want to let go when Carmilla whispered, “Goodnight.”

 Carmilla’s hands slid to Laura’s shoulders as she moved away and their eyes met. There it was again, that urge to kiss Carmilla, she couldn’t give in, not now when they had no reason too, when she couldn’t convince herself it was because she had had too much to drink, not now when she wasn’t sure a kiss would be enough. And Carmilla doesn’t want that, Laura reminded herself, taking a step back.

 “Yeah, um, so I guess, I’ll see you tomorrow, or not, I mean probably tomorrow but you never want to assume anything, I mean you could be busy tomorrow! Are you?” Laura wanted to fall through the floor, why couldn’t she shut up?

 “Tomorrow,” Carmilla confirmed quietly. “What’s wrong?”

 “What?” Laura choked out, feeling exposed.

 “You only ramble like that when you’re nervous about something,” Carmilla said, raising a concerned eyebrow.

 “It’s just- I’m tired, my head is all over the place, I have a lot on my mind and I’m rambling again,” Laura said, forcing her mouth shut.

 Carmilla smiled at her, “Ok. How are you getting home?”

“I’ll call a cab,” Laura shrugged, her hand landing on the apartment door.

“Are you sure? If you stayed, I could just-”

“I have to go, I need to,” Laura said, opening the door.

“…Let me know when you get home, okay?” Carmilla said as Laura stepped out into the hall, “No wait, let me just wait downstairs with you.” 

*

 As the cab pulled away from the apartment building and Laura gave Carmilla one last lingering wave, she released a breath, relaxing into her seat. 

Her stomach twisted into knots as she thought about the situation she was now faced with, she couldn’t hardly deny it to herself anymore. LaFontaine’s words floated to the forefront of her mind… _“_ _If I know Carmilla, I know she’ll play her part well so… don’t fall in love with her, Laura…”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I promise I will finish this fic!
> 
> In my original draft of this chapter I actually had Laura stay at Carm's apartment and then I came to senses and changed it all.


	7. Just Friends?

“Here we go…” Laura said aloud as she heard her phone vibrate from somewhere nearby, signaling a new text message.

She lay on couch staring at the TV, where she’d been for a many number of hours, cocooned in three blankets. She had been expecting some kind of contact around this time, when her friends would begin to wonder where she was.

Her phone lit up, shining brightly in the darkness of Laura’s apartment as she hadn’t bothered to switch on any lights as the apartment slowly drew darker throughout the day. Laura knew she could only ignore her phone for so long before her friends would form a search party and charge their way into the apartment.

She reached for her grape soda and found the can empty, she let out a sigh, her hand stretching to the ground near the couch to grab her phone, just as it started to vibrate again, a call from Perry.

She’d usually have made plans by now, she would have spoken to someone, she’d be at the bar or have people over at the apartment but Laura hadn’t even bothered to get dressed this morning.

She couldn’t ignore Perry any longer, she didn’t want her friends to worry, if she didn’t answer now, Perry could be upstairs in 3 minutes if they were at the bar.

“Hi Per…” Laura said, clearing her throat, the voice coarse after not speaking all day.

“Where are you, Laura? Everything okay?” Perry said, sounding chipper as usual. Laura could hear the sounds of the bar in the background.

“I… I’m sick,” Laura lied, turning the TV volume down.

“You’re _sick_?! Laura, you should have told me! Why didn’t you? We’ll be there in-" 

“ _No!_ I mean… I would much rather be on my own, Perry – I’m probably contagious anyway,” Laura said, reaching absentmindedly for the nearby lamp so she could actually see.

“Laura, you need someone to look after you, have you eaten?” Perry asked.

She could hear talking in the background, it sounded like Carmilla, it made Laura’s stomach twist and turn, she wanted to tear down to the bar to see her but… she couldn’t do that.

“I’m fine, Perry, I had… soup and… a... a sandwich…” Laura grimaced, what food did people eat when they were sick? In reality, Laura stared at the empty cookie and chip packets, she’d just eaten junk food all day.

“Laura, I really think someone should just come by and check on you, we are literally two minutes away. What’s your temperature? Have you taken anything? I could run you a bath, do you think you may need to see a doctor?” Perry’s questions seemed endless, Laura didn’t have the energy to answer them.

“Thanks for the concern, honestly I really appreciate it but I think I’m just going to head to bed now anyway,” Laura said, staring at the ceiling. 

“What about work? Are you going to work in the morning?”

“Probably…?” Laura said, unenthusiastically.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“Well… you should see the guy they get to cover for me… it’s not good.” Laura said, making herself laugh.

 “Oh, but you are sick, Laura-” Perry’s voice was too loud, Laura moved the phone away from her ear.

“Look, Perry, I’ll see how I am in the early hours, like early, _early_ hours and if I’m not feeling any better, I’ll call my boss,” she continued to lie.

“Okay, are you sure you don’t want me to come up?” Perry asked again.

“I’m fine, I’m getting into bed right now,” Laura said, unmoving from her cocoon.

“Get well soon, Laura,” Perry said, almost a demand. “And call me and let me know how you’re doing and if you need anything, I’ll come by tomorrow anyway.”

“Okay, bye,” Laura mumbled.

“Bye Laura.”

She ended the call. She couldn’t do it, she couldn’t face Carmilla today or the others for that matter. She needed some time on her own, some time to think, to work out what the hell was going on inside her head.

 The thing was, she’d always liked Carmilla, found her attractive, enjoyed spending time with her and getting to know her but why were these feelings suddenly so… overwhelming? It was as if they had been turned up to 10. Even just hearing Carmilla’s muffled voice over the phone made her stomach squirm and… she missed her. She’d only been in her apartment about 14 hours ago. This girlfriend thing was really starting to effect her.

She dropped her phone onto the table and threw the blankets over her face with a groan. What if the others worked it out? What if Carmilla found out how she had been feeling? Would she be freaked out? Would things be weird between them?

She couldn’t go down there, she couldn’t face them today… not today.

Her phone vibrated, a text message, the thought that it was probably Carmilla made Laura reach quickly for her phone.

8.24 Carm: _You okay, Cupcake? You’re sick?_

A new message arrived as she stared at her phone.

8.25 Carm: _You forgot your cookies :(_

Laura couldn’t stop the grin from forming, she sat up on the couch. Feeling increasingly guilty as she typed out lies to Carmilla.

8.27 Laura: _Don’t worry, it’s just a cold or something. No big deal._

8.27 Carm: _Sure you don’t need someone to nurse you back to health?_

Jeez, that text brought a sea of images to Laura’s mind. That sounds absolutely wonderful. She pushed the blankets off, feeling way too warm all of a sudden.

8.33 Laura: _Thanks for the tempting offer but I don’t want anyone else to get sick!_

8.34 Carm: _I haven’t gotten sick since I was 14…_

8.35 Carm: _Are you sure you’re okay? You left in a hurry last night and I wasn’t sure if it was something I had done?_

Laura frowned, pulled her lip between her teeth as she read the new message. 

 8.38 Laura: _Don’t worry about me, I’m good. Of course you haven’t done anything!_

8.38 Carm: _You can call me if you need anything, speak to you soon. Get well, Cutie. ;)_

Laura released a sigh falling to the side as she read Carmilla’s words, even just an ordinary text message from her could make her flush.

*

 Laura climbed the steps from the subway, opening her umbrella quickly as the heavy rain fell. She started down one of the three roads that would lead her home. After presenting her early morning show and sitting through two meetings, it was 11. 40 am and she was already almost home for the day. She pulled her coat a little tighter around herself bracing against the harsh wind which threatened to turn her umbrella inside out.

Storms, storms and more storms were expected to hit the city today and tomorrow and it was weather warnings galore.

Laura felt her phone vibrating in her coat pocket and frowned as she tried wriggle it out.

Carmilla was calling.

“Hi Carm,” Laura answered, as she crossed over the street.

“You made it into work then,” Carmilla said in her perfect silky voice that Laura could listen to forever.

“How do you know?” Laura asked, hurrying along.

“It’s live tv, Cupcake,” Carmilla responded, Laura could hear the smirk in her voice.

“Oh, of course,” Laura shook her head, _obviously_ … she was losing her mind.

“You looked as exquisite as ever, I take it that you’re feeling better?” Carmilla said and Laura felt her cheeks reddening.

“Um... I took a lot of cold medicine... but yes, I feel a little better,” Laura lied, jeez, why did she feel so bad? She should be used to lying by now, it seems its all she ever does.

“Are you heading home?” Carmilla asked.

Laura chewed her lip, why? Was she thinking of heading over? Did Laura want to see her? _Yes_. Should she? She wasn’t sure but the idea that she might see Carmilla very soon… it made her heart beat quicker.

“Yes, I’m almost home actually,” Laura said as she passed by McGee’s.

“Good, you should stay inside, this weathers only going to get worse,” Carmilla advised.

“So I’ve heard,” Laura said and Carmilla chuckled, such an endearing sound.

Laura had a sudden feeling this conversion was drawing to a close but she didn’t want to stop talking to Carmilla.

“What are your plans for today? What do you … do most days?” Laura asked as she climbed the steps to her building.

Carmilla breathed a laugh, “Well today, I have a meeting with my mother in… started 10 minutes ago actually…”

“Oh sorry, do you need to go?” Laura paused in the hall as she spoke.

“It’s no big deal, Mother is usually always late,” Carmilla assured her.

“What kind of meeting?” Laura asked as she pushed the button for her floor.

“Nothing dreadfully interesting, my mother makes a lot of investments, she values my opinions.” Carmilla said.

“How long will that be?” Laura asked.

“The meetings are usually rather lengthily,” Carmilla gave a little sigh after she spoke.

“I’m home,” Laura said, dropping her rucksack and umbrella on the floor by the door and trying to remove her coat and keep the phone to her ear at the same time.

“Maybe I’ll see you later, remember what I said, if you need anything, let me know,” Carmilla said, earnestly.

If she needed anything? What if she needed Carmilla to come over so Laura could stare at her all day? Did that count as an anything?

“I’m fine, Carm really I am, I’ll speak to you later,” Laura said instead.

“Okay, bye, Cupcake.”

“Bye.” 

Laura hung her dripping coat to dry on one of the dining chairs and went about cleaning her kitchen but… of course, Perry must have come by… of course she did, there’s a note on the counter next to a box of ginger tea.

 _Laura, you’re not here so I’m assuming you went to work? Here’s a box of ginger tea, it’s meant to be good for head colds and I know you like ginger bread cookies too so I made some, they are in the tupperware container next to the coffee maker. Call me, I can come home tonight if you need me? What about a movie night? Perry. X_  

“Thanks, Per,” Laura spoke aloud to no one.

She glanced around the apartment, of course it was spotless, why hadn’t she noticed that as soon as she walked in?

She grabbed her phone to call Perry.

“Perry! Thanks for the cleaning all my mess and the ginger tea and the cookies and well everything,” Laura said as soon as she answered.

“Laura, you know it’s no problem. How are you feeling? You went to work?” Perry’s questioning began.

 “Um...” Laura didn’t really feel like lying anymore, she sank onto the couch, “I’m a little better.”

“That’s good news, are you… _alone_?” Perry whispered the end of her sentence, it made Laura frown.

 “Yep! Just back from work, is everything okay?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’ve been meaning to speak to you, I wanted to yesterday but Carmilla was there and I didn’t think it was the best-”

“What is it, Perry?” Laura said, sitting up, feeling a little anxious all of a sudden.

“It’s just... the other night in the club…you and Carmilla seemed… rather intimate,” Perry said, appearing to choose her words carefully.

“Oh that, it’s nothing,” Laura said quickly, “William he- he thinks Carmilla and I- it was all... for show,” Laura said, shaking her head, thankful to not have to have this conversation face to face.

“Are you sure, Laura?” Perry questioned.

“Perry, I remember what you and LaF said, _don’t fall in love with Carmilla_ ,” Laura said loudly, in a rush.

And then she paused, her breath catching, saying those words out loud, don’t fall _in love with Carmilla…._ It felt like a punch in the stomach.

“Laura, Dear, about that… it’s just… Carmilla hasn’t quite been her usual self lately.”

“What do you mean?” Laura asked, she couldn’t sit still anymore, she stood and began to pace around her living room.

“What’s the most appropriate word to use here? Um… As you know, Carmilla is quite the … womanizer, _was…_ quite the womanizer.” Perry stated.

“Yes, but she can’t, can she? She’s meant to be with me remember, she can’t be seen with other girls, that would give the game away.” Laura said, gesturing wildly with her arms.

“The thing is, I believe and LaF as well, that Carmilla hasn’t actually been with another woman since before Christmas,” Perry said.

Hearing that made Laura want to jump for joy but it was also entirely plausible, this all started on Christmas eve.

“So?” was Laura’s clever response.

 “Well, don’t you think that _means something_?” Perry asked.

“Sure, it means she’s very dedicated to _not getting found out,_ ” Laura said, rather deadpan.

“Laura…” Perry paused, “Do you like Carmilla?”

Laura froze on the spot, “What?”

 “I think maybe… she likes you, Laura. I think she does… and I think she’s been attracted to you for an even longer time and I know what we said about Carmilla, she doesn’t do relationships but I don’t know… Laura, do you not think maybe you have something?”

 Laura responded after a moment of shock.

 “Perry, trust me when I tell you, Carmilla only sees me as a friend, she as much as told me that the other night, she called me her “ _friend_ ,” in fact she was ready to end this thing two nights ago,” Laura said, kicking the back of one of her armchairs. “It’s like you guys said, she’s playing the part well, _very well_.”

 When Laura finished speaking she stopped at her window, staring out at the heavy rainfall.

 “Laura, are you sure? Because we saw you two the other night and she looked really happy… _you both did_.” Perry said, after taking a deep breath.

 Perry’s words were making Laura’s heart swell and break at the same time.

 “It’s not like that, we’re just friends… _just friends_ ,” she said quietly.

 “Okay,” Perry said, “I suppose-”

 There was a knock on Laura’s apartment door.

 “Perry, I gotta go, that’s the door,” She said quickly, “bye, see you soon.”

 She dropped her phone onto the couch, not sure if she was happy that the phone call had come to an abrupt end and hurried to open the door.

 “Miss Hollis? Delivery for Miss Hollis,” a young man was stood, blocked mostly by the fairly large box in his grasp.

 “That’s me,” Laura said, frowning as she took the box, which was kinda heavy.

 “Thanks, thanks a lot,” Laura said as she kicked her door closed.

 She placed the box on her small living room table and she stared at it, she didn’t remember ordering anything… definitely not anything this… big.

 Had she done this while drunk?

 She blinked at the box for another moment before curiosity got the better of her and she began to pull it open.

“Huh?”

 It was a box packed with maybe about 50 boxes of cookies… it did seem like something she would order while she was very drunk. If this was true… maybe she needed to cool it with the alcohol for a while.

 Laura shook her head, “Okay, looks like I’ve got cookies to last me until the end of the year,” Laura said… or well maybe a couple of months.

 She moved the box into the corner of her kitchen, feeling a smidge embarrassed, the guys would find it hilarious that she had bought so many cookies while she was drunk, maybe she could hide them somewhere…  she had a mountain of Perry’s ginger bread to get through before she could start on these. 

*

 Laura stirred the pasta around the pan, absentmindedly, she liked pasta, it was an easy meal to make and it always tasted good. She checked on the bubbling sauce and turned the heat down.

 She frowned when there was a knock on her door, twice in one day? Not so soon after, Carmilla appeared. Laura felt a moment of panic and considered hiding in a kitchen cupboard but then she couldn’t stop the smile from forming on her face, she’d missed Carmilla so much.  

 “You know, no one ever knocks, it’s almost a foreign sound to hear in this apartment,” Laura said, folding her arms, leaning in the kitchen doorway and watching as Carmilla propped her umbrella by the door.

 “ _Laura_ , how are you?” Carmilla said, approaching her with a perfect smile, as she striped off her leather jacket.

 “I’m good, do you want some pasta?” Laura asked, as she returned to the cooking food.

 “Sure, oh I see the cookies made it here in one piece,” Carmilla said, glancing down at the box.

 “You knew about the cookies?” Laura winced.

 “Of course… I sent them,” Carmilla winked, as she returned to her side.

 “You sent them?! Oh, I thought I had done it after one too many drinks!” Laura laughed, feeling relieved.

Carmilla chuckled, “Definitely sounds like a possibility." 

“Carm,” Laura turned away from the cooking food, “why did you feel the need to send me so many boxes of cookies?”

“Because you asked for cookies.”

Laura smiled, shaking her head at the absurdity as she pulled Carmilla into a hug, “Thank you, Carmilla, that’s a whole lotta cookies.”

Carmilla’s smile when they pulled away was almost impossible to look away from.

“Well I’d have sent you a year’s supply but I didn’t think you’d be able to fit them all in your apartment.” Carmilla said, leaning on the counter casually. God, how did Carmilla manage to make leaning a counter look so… sexy? That smirk was… Laura needed to take a few deep breaths.

“Maybe we could make a start on them for dessert…” Laura could barely speak above a whisper, Carmilla’s stare was so intense, “although… there are other… sweet treats-”

 “Laura, the pasta,” Carmilla spoke suddenly.

 “ _Crap, its fine_ , it’s still good, we can still eat it!” Laura said, moving the pasta quickly away from the heat.

 “Do you need any help?”  Carmilla asked.

 “Um… Yes, yes, plates, you know where they are.” Laura said, hurriedly. 

*

 They were sat close together around Laura’s dining table, it was small but large enough for a few people but Laura could feel Carmilla’s knee grazing hers every so often.

“How was the meeting with your mother?” Laura asked stabbing at the pasta with her fork.

“Too long and mind-numbingly boring,” Carmilla responded with a frown, obviously not too keen to discuss that particular topic.

Laura nodded, chewing her food slowly.

“The weathers getting really bad, you probably should have stayed home,” Laura said, as the rain lashed against the windows of the apartment.

Carmilla gave a little shrug and a smile, “Well, I was in the area.”

“You know this is actually really good,” Carmilla said, filing her fork.

“You say that as if you didn’t expect a whole lot from this meal,” Laura smirked. 

Carmilla eyebrows raised for a fraction of a second almost as if she were a little surprised, she returned Laura’s smirk, “I didn’t after you almost ruined the meal.”

“ _You_ were distracting me,” Laura said, staring at Carmilla amused, goading her on purpose.

 “If I recall correctly, it was you causing the distraction. What was it you were saying? Something about… dessert?” Carmilla said, leaning closer, her knee glued to Laura’s leg now. The way Carmilla said the word; _dessert_ , licking at her lower lip before she said it. This conversation was… exciting.

 “Dessert?” Laura whispered, feeling a stirring within. There it was again, that desire to lean closer, to say things, to do things she knew she couldn’t, the same feeling Laura had had two nights in Carmilla’s apartment.

 Carmilla nodded and Laura didn’t have a clue what was happening anymore.

 What was going on? What were they even talking about?

 “ _Ooh dessert! Yes,”_ Laura said loudly, coming out of her Carmilla induced trance.

 Carmilla’s eyes widened and she moved an inch or two away at the sudden noise.

 “Ginger bread, Perry made ginger bread, if you want some?” Laura said, returning to her food.

 Carmilla’s eyes returned to her plate. “I’ll probably give the ginger bread a miss actually, Cupcake, not really my thing.”

 “That’s… that’s okay, so… what would be your thing?” Laura asked, was she still talking about dessert, she didn’t even know anymore.

 Carmilla looked up at her then, a smile playing on the corners of her mouth, her gaze penetrating.

 Laura’s phone began to vibrate from somewhere in the apartment.

 “That’s my phone,” She got up and moved swiftly into the kitchen.

 “Where is it?” She frowned, moving back into the living area and over to the couch.

 “Found it,” Laura grabbed it up from the couch.

“Perry!” She answered and then paused, listening to Perry speak.

“I’m fine, I’m a lot better now,” Laura said, walking over to Carmilla, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Of course I remember, we had the conversation literally hours ago." 

She paused, listening again as Perry spoke.

“No-” She frowned then, turning quickly on the spot and taking a step or two away from Carmilla. “No, I haven’t.”

“I’m not alone because Carmilla is _here_ ,” Laura went on.

 “What? Perry of course you guys can come up!” She whispered into the phone, a blush appearing on her face.

 “See you in a minute.” Laura slipped her phone into her pocket.

 “That was-”

 “Perry, by any chance.” Carmilla said, fiddling with her fork.

 Laura nodded as she returned to her seat and her food.

 Should she mention the conversation she’d had with Perry this morning? She chewed her lip for a moment. How would that go? Hey, Carm, so Perry said you hadn’t slept with anyone for over a month, she also said she thought we had something? What does that even mean?

 “What is it?” Carmilla asked, regarding her with curiosity, “You look… uneasy.”

 “I um… I had an _interesting_ conversation with Perry this morning, this afternoon actually, yes it was afternoon-”

 “ _Laura_ ,” Carmilla said, sufficiently ending her ramble.

 “She said, well mentioned this… peculiar thing, possibly completely nonsensical actually,” Laura said, starting to tap her fork loudly against the table top.

 Carmilla placed her hand on top of hers.

 “She seemed to think, um, that _you and I_ …”

 She met Carmilla’s gaze as she leaned closer, intrigued.

“That you and I maybe might _have… somethi-”_

“Hello!” Perry entered the apartment.

“ _For the love of_ \- who- why would you just _burst in_ like that?” Carmilla said, irritably. Standing quickly and releasing an angry breath. She grabbed her plate and disappeared into the kitchen.

“Is she okay?” Perry asked, frowning in Carmilla’s direction.

Maybe it was a good that Perry just walked in….

“Are you feeling better, L?” LaF closed the apartment door, their hair flat to their head from the rain. “Ooh, pasta, nice.”

 “Are you enjoying the ginger bread?” Perry asked, removing her coat.

 “Yes, thank you for those.”

 “I take it you won’t be down at the bar tonight, no?” Perry said.

 Laura shook her head, grabbing her plate and turning to follow Carmilla.

 “No problem, we’re here for you, whatever you need, movies it is!” Perry said clapping her hands and then disappearing into her bedroom.

 “Movies it is,” Laura whispered unenthusiastically as she stood next to Carmilla at the sink, giving her a sideways glance.

 Carmilla was glaring at her plate as she cleaned it.

 “Are you going to stay?” Laura asked quietly.

 Carmilla glanced at her momentarily.

 “For the movie?” Laura added.

 Carmilla placed down her wet plate, and regarded Laura for a moment.

She sucked in a deep breath, “Sure, why not?”

 Laura grinned, handing Carmilla a towel.

 “As long it’s not some sappy rom-com,” Carmilla said, as they returned to the living room.

 LaF and Perry were making themselves comfortable on the couch, beside Perry a hoard of dvds. “So, what would you like to watch?” Perry asked.

 Carmilla made eye contact with Laura for a moment and then she sat in the closest armchair, Laura made up her mind and sat down on the arm chair directly opposite.

 “So, I have The Proposal-” Perry began.

 “ _Not_ , The Proposal!” Laura spoke quickly, straightening up in her chair.

 What game was Perry trying to play? Why would she choose The Proposal of all films for this particular movie night?

 “Are you sure?” Perry asked, glancing up at her.

 “Without a doubt, what else ya got?” Laura forced a smile, hoping beyond hope that Carmilla had never seen or heard of that film.

 Glancing at her, Carmilla just gave her a smile. Looks like she wasn’t even listening.

 Perry continued, “I’ve got Silence of the Lambs and-”

 “That one, we’ll watch that one,” Laura said, quickly.

 “Really?” Perry looked up at her, “You don’t wanna hear the rest?”

 “Carm, Silence of the Lambs, should we go with that one?”

 “I’m sure that’s probably one of the better movies in the collection you’ve brought along,” Carmilla nodded at Perry.

 Perry didn’t look like she really wanted to watch Silence of the Lambs as the movie began to play. The rain was getting heavier again and thunder sounded in the distance.

 Laura tried to keep her gaze fixed on the tv but she couldn’t help but glance at Carmilla especially when she made delightful little sounds, like chuckling or groaning when she stretched in her chair.

 When Laura began to lose interest in the film, she looked to Carmilla, who met her gaze with a smile and Laura squirmed a little in her seat. She didn’t like being seated so far away…

 As the movie went on, Perry, it turned out was the only one of them completely invested in it. LaF kept making comments about the films mistakes and Carmilla pulled out her phone and seemed interested solely in that.

 What was so damn interesting about her phone? Laura wondered, with a smile she pulled out her own.

 9.31 Laura: _Film too dull for you?_

 Carmilla raised an eyebrow at her phone and then her eyes met Laura’s, she regarded her for a moment before smiling and then she began to type.

9.33 Carm: _Dull is not a word I would use to describe this particular film._

Laura read Carmilla’s response and then looked over at her.

9:34 Laura: _You haven’t looked at the tv in 15 minutes._

Carmilla was smirking as she typed her reply.

9.35 Carm: _And how would you know that? By the sounds of it, neither have you._

Laura blushed, feeling exposed. Carmilla was staring at her, a small smile playing on her lips.

9.36 Laura: _ha ha very funny Carm_

9.36 Laura: _What are you doing, buzzfeed quizzes?_

Carmilla glanced at her with a raised eyebrow.

9.37 Carm: _Yes, just discovering what type of kitchen appliance I am._

Laura laughed aloud, Perry and LaF looked toward her, both with looks of confusion. She cleared her throat, turning back to the tv.

She felt her phone vibrate again.

 9.38 Carm: _Waffle iron, apparently_.

9.39 Laura: _Is that really what you were doing?_

9:40 Carm _: No, I was texting William about his work. Nothing too interesting, I’m afraid._

9:41 Laura: _Can you get me a glass of water?_

To Laura’s surprise, Carmilla stood and disappeared into the kitchen and returned seconds later with a glass of water, she passed in front of the tv, handed the glass to Laura and returned to her chair.

 “Thank you,” Laura said, taking a gulp.

 “What was that about?” LaF said, staring at Carmilla, perplexed.

 “She… looked thirsty,” Carmilla responded, she then frowned at LaF as if that had been blatantly obvious and a perfectly normal thing to do.

 “Remember LaFontaine, Laura hasn’t been well, she needs to stay hydrated. Good thinking, Carmilla.” Perry said, giving Carmilla a nod and then focusing her attention back on the tv screen.

9.45 Laura: _That was hilarious… I looked thirsty?_

Carmilla shook her head at her phone _._

9.46 Carm: _You weren’t much help._

9.46 Laura: _I was surprised, didn’t think you’d actually get the water._

9.47 Carm: _Why wouldn’t I?_

“You two have been staring at your phones for most of the film so far!” Perry suddenly spoke. “And you two wanted to watch this!”

Laura was startled by Perry’s shrill voice and sat up in her chair, whispering, “Sorry, Perry,” she focused her attention on the screen.

A few moments later she felt her phone buzz, she tried to refrain from looking at it, she glanced at Carmilla, she was smiling as she stared at the tv. When her phone buzzed again, Laura sneaked a glance.

9.54 Carm: _What is there a test after this I don’t know about?_

9.58: Carm: _You ignoring me now, Cupcake? :(_

Laura laughed silently, trying and failing to keep a straight face. She stood up, heading straight for the bathroom. She leaned on the closed bathroom door when she stepped inside, the rain sounded much louder in here. Her phone buzzed in her hand again.

10.00 Carm: _You forgot to ask Miss Perry for a hall pass._

10.01 Laura _: Hope I don’t get a detention._

When Laura returned from the bathroom a few minutes later, Carmilla was staring at the tv screen, she didn’t even glance in Laura’s direction. Laura checked her phone.

 10.03 Carm: _Tell me, did little Laura Hollis ever get detention_?

10.09 Laura: _Yes, and I have absolutely no doubt that Little Carm wasn’t a regular._

10.11 Carm _: Really? You in detention?_

10.11 Carm _: Also, how presumptuous of you…_

10.14 Laura _: Got caught skipping class._

10.15 Laura: _Carm, I know you got thrown out of at least one school…_

Carmilla looked over, studied Laura for an intense few seconds, almost as if she were trying to work something out, a smile playing on her corners of her mouth.

10.17 Carm: _You skipped class?_

10.18 Laura _: Why is that so hard for you to believe?_

10.20 Carm: _A few words come to mind_ ,  _prissy and tightly wound._

10.23 Laura: _I am neither of those things._

Laura frowned in Carmilla’s direction.

 10.26 Carm: _Meet me in the kitchen._

Carmilla stretched in her chair and got to her feet, she sauntered off into the kitchen without a word to anyone.

 Laura stood, picking up her glass.

 “And where are _you_ going?” Perry asked.

 “Kitchen,” Laura said with a shrug, before following Carmilla.

 Carmilla was sitting on the counter, fiddling with a corkscrew.

 “Did Miss Perry scold you?” Carmilla whispered, amused.

 “I live here, I can go into my own kitchen,” Laura whispered back, mildly annoyed, placing her glass on the counter.

 “And…” Laura said with a lighthearted scowl, moving to stand in front of Carmilla. “I am not prissy.”

Carmilla huffed a laugh, shaking her head, “Sure, Cutie.”

Laura stared up at her, placing her hands on the counter on either side of Carmilla, trapping her in, “Well, _you’re_ narcissistic and-  and you’re… condescending and- and you’re _so_ _infuriating.”_

Infuriatingly perfect was what Laura had wanted to say.

Carmilla stared at her, her face expressionless. Laura sucked in a deep breath, her breathing rather erratic.

Carmilla inched her head a little closer, her eyebrows drawing together, she opened her mouth slightly as if she were about to say something important. Laura’s breath caught as she waited…

“ _You_ are a _vision_ when you’re angry,” Carmilla smirked.

Laura scowled, “ _That_ is the sort of thing I’m talking about.”

“Okay, okay,” Carmilla said, nodding her head and looking off to the side as if she were considering something, “You may be prissy and annoying and uptight and-”

“ _Carm_ ,” Laura warned, cutting her off.

“ _But…_ ” Carmilla added, bopping the end of Laura’s nose with her finger, so Laura glared a little harder, her heart beating hard against her chest. “… you’re also fierce, and endearing, and determined, and amusing, and-” Carmilla paused and looked up when the overhead light in the living room was switched on.

 “Movie must be over,” she said sliding down from the counter and in doing so brushing her body against Laura who was unmoving as she tried to digest Carmilla’s words.

 “Laura,” Carmilla said, placing her hands on her shoulders and taking a few steps forward, until she was free.

 Wait… come back, Laura wanted to yell, like Rose in Titanic.

 “Well I must admit _I_ enjoyed the film, I’m not sure about you two,” Laura heard Perry’s voice coming closer.

 “I’ve seen it a dozen times or more,” Carmilla said, as she left the kitchen.

 Laura turned to face the room as Perry entered, “Laura, what’s wrong? You’re not feeling bad again are you?”

 “I’m… fine… I’m…” Laura shook her head, she gave up finishing her sentence.

 “Are you sure?” Perry said, tidying around the kitchen, “You look a little dazed…? Me and LaFontaine are going to stay here tonight so we’ll be here if you need us.” She said, giving Laura’s shoulder a squeeze before leaving the room.

 Laura pushed a hand through her hair with a sigh and wandered out into the living area to find Carmilla and LaF talking near the couch. She watched as Carmilla slid her hands into the back pockets of her dark jeans, and Laura couldn’t look away from her, she rubbed the palm of the hand against her thigh frustratedly.  

 “We’ll be off to bed,” Perry said, exiting the bathroom a few minutes later, “Good night you two,” she said disappearing into her bedroom.

 “Night guys,” LaF said, following Perry and closing the door behind them.

 There was a moment of silence, the lashing of the rain against the window was all to be heard and the occasional rumbling of thunder.

 “So…” Carmilla sauntered over, seemingly very relaxed, “Laura Hollis skipped class…”

 “ _Once_.” Laura breathed out a sigh, “I skipped class _once_ , I got caught and I _never_ did it again and it was my one and only detention.”

 Carmilla smiled, “How very badass, Hollis.”

 Laura couldn’t help but smile back even though she really didn’t want too, “ _Carm_ …” she groaned, pulling at the sleeves of her sweater, agitatedly, why did she have tease? Why did she have to be so damn enticing? Especially when she wasn’t even trying to be!

 “ _What_ , Cutie?” Carmilla mumbled, grabbing hold of one of Laura’s sleeve covered hands in both of hers and massaging the palm of Laura’s hand with her thumbs.

 Laura knew it probably wasn’t appropriate to voice her complaints, instead she leaned her forehead on Carmilla’s shoulder and closed her eyes, “I’m tired,” she whispered.

 “Okay, looks like it’s time for me to go,” Carmilla said, placing her hands on the tops of Laura’s arms and glancing to the window.

 Laura suddenly had the overwhelming desire to wrap her arms around Carmilla and never let go but she restrained herself.

 “It’s bad,” Laura said, quietly, turning her head to peer at the rain.

“Yep, time to me to face _that_ ,” Carmilla frowned, “And for you to go to bed.”

 Laura lifted her head when she realized what Carmilla was actually saying, “Are you sure about that, Carm? You’re going to try and get home in that?”

 “Rain is not going to hurt me, Cupcake,” Carmilla said confidently, rubbing the tops of Laura’s arms.

 “Right but actually it might, there are weather warnings in place,” Laura said, seriously. “You’ll have to stay.”

 The rain seemed to fall heavier as Laura spoke and Carmilla stared out the window for an indecisive moment.

 Even Laura felt a tad indecisive, although she assumed not for the same reasons as Carmilla. If she were honest with herself, of course she didn’t want Carmilla to leave, she valued every second got she got to spend with her, but what if she did something stupid, something impulsive. What if she ruined everything?

 “Is that…okay?” Carmilla asked with a tone of uncertainty.

“Of course it is,” Laura said with a assertive nod, grabbing Carmilla’s hand and pulling her towards her bedroom, “I’ll find you some pajamas!”

“Nothing with animals on...” Carmilla said quietly, allowing herself to be pulled along.

*

 Laura looked up from her phone as she lay in bed as Carmilla closed the bedroom door, a giggle escaping her lips. “You know yellow really suits you, Carm.”

 Carmilla glared at her, walking around to the other side of the bed wearing Laura’s yellow pajama shorts and the plain black top she was already wearing as she refused everything else.

 “You sure you don’t want to wear the matching shirt?” Laura teased.

 “I’d much rather wear nothing at all, Cupcake,” she said with an air of displeasure.

Carmilla’s words silenced Laura’s teasing giggles almost immediately and she flushed red at the notion, “Yeah, you’re probably good in what you’re wearing,” she said, focusing her attention back on her phone.

 Carmilla sat on the edge of the bed rubbing at the back of her stiff neck for a moment and then lifted her legs up onto the sheets, lying back with a pleasant groan that made Laura glance at the quickly.

 “Do you remember the last time we were in this room?” Carmilla said, her eyes closed.

 Laura nodded, “How could I forget? How is your hand, by the way?”

 Carmilla turned over her palm and offered it to Laura, a thin pink scar was clear against her palm. Laura regarded the scar for a moment and then ran her fingertip along it. Carmilla’s eyes opened at the unexpected caress.

 “That was… an enjoyable night,” Laura said, meeting Carmilla’s eyes.

 Carmilla only nodded before pulling the sheets from under her and getting into Laura’s bed.

 Laura returned her gaze to her phone and a few moments of silence followed until Laura giggled.

 “What?” Carmilla asked, quietly.

 “Nothing,” Laura replied, shaking her head but still smiling.

 “What is it?” Carmilla asked, moving closer, trying to see what Laura was looking at.

 Laura glanced over, meeting her eyes trying not to smile, “I just remembered you’re wearing the shorts.”

 Carmilla deflated and shook her head, turning her head in the opposite direction.

 Laura dropped her phone down and switched off the bedside lamp, turned over so she could see Carmilla. She listened to the rain as she waited for her eyes to adjust to the dark.

 “Carm,” Laura said, she received no response.

  “Hey Carm, don’t give me the cold shoulder,” Laura giggled, moving closer and attempting to tickle at Carmilla’s stomach, trying to elicit a response. “Look how hospitable I’ve been to you.”

 “Fine,” Carmilla said, sounding annoyed but she was smiling, grabbing Laura’s fiendish hand and then laying her head on Laura’s shoulder. “You’re right, I’m a terrible friend,” she breathed out.

  _Friend_ … Laura wanted to weep.

 “Well… I’m this close to kicking you out,” Laura teased, pretending to attempt to move away.

 “ _No_ ,” Carmilla mumbled, moving closer and wrapping an arm around Laura’s waist.

 “Okay but one more comment from you and you’re out of here,” Laura whispered, closing her eyes and trying to prepare her very awake body for sleep.

 “What were you trying to tell me before the ginger twins interrupted?” Carmilla asked, unexpectedly.

 “Hmm?” Laura tried to focus up.

 “When we were eating…” Carmilla added.

 “Oh, that…” Laura tensed and quickly tried to come up with a response, anything but the truth which now seemed like a completely stupid idea. She shook her head, “It was nothing.”

 “Are you sure?” Carmilla asked.

 “Yeah it was… nothing important,” Laura said, hoping Carmilla would drop it.

 Thunder sounded loud outside and Laura was startled, “Jeez, that was loud.”

 “Are you afraid of thunder storms, Cupcake?” Carmilla asked, amused. 

“ _No_ but that was really loud,” Laura mumbled unhappily.

Carmilla chucked into her shoulder, “It’s only just the beginning.” 

*

 Laura groaned, she wanted to cry when her alarm sounded at 3.30am. She was so comfy and warm, she had never hated her job as much as she did in that moment.

 Her eyes seemed to be glued shut, her limbs so heavy as she tried to move.

 “What… is… _that_?” Carmilla grumbled, angrily through gritted teeth.

 Laura’s eyes snapped open, _oh god,_ _Carmilla is here!_ She moved quickly silencing her phones alarm. When the ringing stopped, Carmilla made another grumbling sound and pulled at Laura’s waist.

 “I’m getting up,” Laura whispered, moving Carmilla’s arm.

 “Why?” Carmilla groaned.

 “I have to go to work,” Laura sat up.

 “Why?” Carmilla mumbled in the same tone.

 “Because I have to,” Laura said with a sigh.

 Carmilla groaned, rolled over and didn’t move again.

 Laura hurried around the apartment, her usual routine in the morning, she found her bag, coat, still raining, _great._ She had her coffee, keys, umbrella- wait…Carmilla.

 She placed down her bag and moved quickly into her bedroom. Carmilla didn’t appear to have moved much.

 “Carm, I’m heading to work now,” Laura said, sitting on the edge of the bed where Carmilla was sleeping.

 Carmilla’s hand reached out blindly in the dark, her eyes still closed. Laura grasped her hand not sure what Carmilla was searching for, she settled when their hands joined.

“I’ll actually need that hand to go to work,” Laura said with a smile after a quiet moment.

 Laura slowly withdrew her hand from Carmilla’s and stood, glancing down at her one last time, “I usually get back around midday,” she whispered and Carmilla didn’t respond. 

*

 “Carm, you’re still here!” Laura said as she entered her apartment that afternoon finding Carmilla on the couch eating cereal.

Carmilla looked up but before she could say anything, Laura spoke, “Wait-wait,” she smiled dropping her umbrella and leaving the apartment before walking straight back in, “Hi Honey! I’m Home!”

 They both laughed, “So I see. How was work? What’s it like out there?” Carmilla asked.

 “Good and not too bad, I think it’s passing,” Laura said with a shrug, removing her coat.

 Carmilla nodded, chewing her cereal.

 “I can’t believe you’re still here,” Laura said, sitting beside her on the couch.

 “Well, I did only wake up about half an hour ago,” Carmilla said, checking the time on her arm.

 “Are Perry and LaF-” Laura started to ask, looking toward Perry’s closed bedroom door.

 “No, they must have left earlier,” Carmilla said, placing her bowl on the table.

 Laura nabbed Carmilla’s coffee, taking a sip.  

 “So…” Carmilla said, clearing her throat.

 “So?” Laura said, meeting her gaze.

 “There’s actually something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you,” Carmilla spoke hesitantly, rubbing the back of her neck. 

Laura swallowed, “Okay,” she nodded, tensely.

Why did Carmilla look so uncertain? What on earth was she going to say?!

“Laura, I have another favor to ask of you…”


	8. What if we ruin it all?

 Laura hurried from her bedroom, after a quick glance in the mirror, picking a piece of lint off her blue shirt with the cute bows, she never really bothered dressing up for her father’s visits but she at least wanted to look nice, especially today.

 She headed toward the kitchen to catch up with Carmilla, pausing to fix the throw on the couch and hang Carmilla’s jacket and to correct the dining chairs and to glance anxiously around the room. Laura sighed, she was nervous, her father and his wife Rosie would be here in a matter of minutes, she never usually cared this much about the state of her apartment or what meal she threw together or how well the night would go but now with all the whole lying about Carmilla being her girlfriend thing, she had the sudden desire to make sure everything else was perfect.

She paused in the kitchen doorway, smiling as she caught sight of Carmilla. She looked so at home, moving around the kitchen as if it were her own, closing the fridge with her hip, her hands full of various condiments and a spoon sticking out of her mouth, moving back to the stove. She knew her way around the kitchen better than Laura did.

She’s so perfect, Laura thought, leaning in the doorway and just basking at the view. Look at her effortlessly quaffed hair and her heavenly jawline, her perfect dark eyes.... oh god she’s looking at me.

“Earth to Laura… hello? What are you thinking about?” Carmilla asked, giving her a confused smile. 

“I- um…” Laura responded, shaking her head and moving towards Carmilla and the stove. “How is it going?” Laura gestured towards the pot, “ _Did you remember salt?_ Do I even _have_ salt?” She panicked, chewing her lip.

Carmilla stirred the curry sauce, calmly, “Calm down, Cutie, _everything_ will be fine,” she spoke confidently, giving her shoulder a squeeze. Laura took a deep breath at her touch. 

“Okay, so the curry is almost there, now we just need to cook the rice and that’s dinner.” Carmilla said, moving off around the kitchen again. 

“They’ll be here soon,” Laura said quietly, fidgeting with her hands.

“Laura,” Carmilla approached her, lifting Laura’s chin with her index finger, their eyes meeting. “Please try not to get so worked up about this, it’s just your dad.”

Laura nodded, and Carmilla turned and focused her attention back on the stove.

Carmilla was right, it was just her father, not the queen of England. She should be excited not worrying about this.

“ _Oww!_ ”  Carmilla yelled, waving her hand around.

“What?! What the _hell just happened_?” Laura said, trying to grab at Carmilla’s wild arm to see what was the matter. 

“ _Hot!_ ” Carmilla said, moving quickly and turning on the faucet. 

“What was _hot_!?” Laura asked, catching sight of Carmilla’s reddened fingers as the cold water ran over them and then glancing back at the oven. "Carm, how do you always manage to injure yourself in my kitchen?"

Both of them paused when a knock sounded on the apartment door.

“ _They’re here_! _Oh my god!_ ” Laura whisper yelled in horror.

“ _Calm down, answer the door_!” Carmilla whispered in response, quickly grabbing a towel.

 Laura hurried to the door, Carmilla followed, wrapping an arm around Laura’s waist, “No, your hand! You need to stay-” but Carmilla reached or the door handle. 

“Hi!” they both said at the same time. Laura tried to smile broadly as Sherman and his wife appeared in the doorway, but thought she probably looked a little psycho. 

“Hello!” Sherman said as Laura pulled him into a hug.

“Hi, I’m Carmilla,” Laura heard her introducing herself to Rosie.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Rosie responded.

Rosie wore large glasses and her copperish hair hung in little curls, one of Laura’s favorite things about Rosie was that she was short just like her.

“Carmilla, lovely to see you,” Sherman pulled Carmilla into an unexpected hug. 

“So…” he stared between the two of them proudly, as he closed the apartment door “You two finally decided to give this thing a try… I’m so happy for you guys.”

“Finally?” Laura asked giving Sherman a puzzled look.

“Well,” he removed this coat whilst Laura took Rosie’s, “I always thought you two, well Laura at least…”

“Actually Dad, I’m not sure-” Laura said, quickly.

“No, I’d like to hear,” Carmilla said grabbing Laura’s hand as their guests moved toward the couch.

“Wasn’t I saying, Rose, a while back, that they’d make a good couple? And then I hear you’ve been dating _for months_ without my knowledge.” He said, giving Laura a little disappointed shake of his head. “I always thought that she liked ya, Carmilla and well obviously she did.” He said, with a confident nod, sitting down with Rosie.

Carmilla smirked, wrapping an arm around her as she blushed red and wanted to disappear forever.

Christ, her father had been here for less than two minutes and he had already managed to mortify her beyond belief.

“Dad, that’s not quite-” Laura began.

Carmilla laid a kiss on her cheek and Laura forgot the rest of what she was saying. She glanced sideways at Carmilla’s face, close to hers and they smiled at each other.

Finding herself suddenly unable to hold eye contact with Carmilla for more than just a few seconds, Laura lowered her gaze, noticing Carmilla’s burned hand balled into a fist at her side, she’d almost forgot about that.

“ _Oh!_ We need to go into the kitchen, _we need drinks, I’ll get drinks_!” Laura said grabbing Carmilla’s wrist and pulling her alongside into the kitchen.

She pulled her over to the sink, and Carmilla began running the cold water over her fingers again.

“What did you do?” Laura whispered, there was a red burn along the center of Carmilla’s fingers but it didn’t look like there had been any significant damage done.

“The thing was hot on the oven,” Carmilla pouted.

“Of course the oven is hot!” Laura said, shaking her head but she couldn’t help but smile.

Carmilla rolled her eyes, obviously a smidge embarrassed, “That big spoon… was hot.”

“Oh _Shit_ , you need to turn the rice down,” Carmilla said, pointing to the stove.

 Laura moved quickly, scrambling over to the oven and shouting to her father.

“Dad, what would you like to drink? I have um… beer or-”

“Yes, that’s fine for me. Rosie?” Sherman responded.

“Anything, I’ll have the same,” Rosie yelled. “Do you need any help?”

“ _No_ , No, we’ve got everything under control,” Laura said, moving to the kitchen doorway and smiling at their guests.

Carmilla was at the fridge when Laura turned around, “Get back over there, I’ll do this,” she said, taking the beers from Carmilla’s hands.

Happy that Carmilla was sufficiently taking care of her injury, Laura took the drinks out into the living room.

“Rosie, you look lovely today,” Laura said as she placed their drinks down.

“Thank you, Laura,” Rosie responded and Sherman tapped her knee affectionately.

“What are we eating? Smells great,” Sherman said, reaching for his bottle. 

“Curry... Is that ok? I won’t lie, Carmilla actually has done most of the cooking, so I can guarantee you it will actually taste good,” Laura said, honestly.

“Can’t wait, Honey,” Sherman winked and gave her a smile.

“Actually, I’m just going to check on Carmilla,” Laura said, backing up.

Laura tried her best to move casually back to the kitchen, “Carm…” she whispered when she reached her side.

“Pass me the towel,” Carmilla said, pointing across the room.

“How is it?” Laura asked as Carmilla dried off her hands.

There was a thin red burn along the center of three of her fingers.

“Is it okay?” Laura wondered aloud.

Carmilla shrugged, stretching her fingers, “It’ll be fine.”

“Does it hurt?” Laura asked, meeting Carmilla’s gaze.

“Yeah, a little,” Carmilla answered.

Laura smiled, grabbing Carmilla’s wrist and placed a kiss to Carmilla’s tender fingers.

“How’s that?” Laura chewed her lip.

Carmilla smiled, shaking her head, “Much better actually.” 

“Come on,” Laura said, taking Carmilla’s hand.

*

 Laura’s dining table was small so it was a little difficult to squeeze the four of them around it but they managed, Carmilla’s and Laura’s legs touching as they sat so close. 

“This is great, Carmilla,” Sherman said, nodding contently as he ate.

Thank you, Mr Hollis,” Carmilla responded, looking up at him with a smile. 

“Please call me, Sherman, you don’t have to call me Mr Hollis now that you’re dating my daughter,” Sherman said, with a casual wave of his fork.

“Well, thanks Sherman,” Carmilla said, with a nod and Laura placed her hand reassuringly on Carmilla’s knee for a few seconds.

“How will you be spending your weekend?” Carmilla asked.

“We’re gonna see some sights. Now Rosie here has never been to the empire state,” Sherman said, placing a hand on Rosie’s back.

“No?” Laura said, as she picked up her beer. “You’ve visited the city before though?” 

“Yes, it just… never really held any interest for me, it’s just a building, right?” Rosie said, loading more food onto her fork.

Laura agreed, “I feel the same, I’ve been once about 4 years ago,” Laura shrugged, “I guess the views are good.” 

“So, how long have you girls been dating now?” Rosie asked, glancing between the two of them. 

Laura swallowed heavily as the unexpected subject change. 

“Um, how long… would it have been now?” Laura looked to Carmilla.

Laura tried to think fast, it was supposedly a month and a bit at New Years… 

“Two, almost three months,” Carmilla said, casually.

“I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me, Honey,” Sherman said, smiling at her.

“I know, Dad, I’m sorry, just wanted to make sure… it was right,” Laura grasped Carmilla’s hand. 

“How are your friends, LaF and Perry? I noticed she’s not here,” Sherman asked. 

“You know she spends most of her nights at LaF’s place now. They’ll be down at the bar later, we should all go,” Laura said, breathing a sigh of relief at the change of subject. 

“That sounds nice. So, you guys have any plans for the weekend?” Sherman asked, sipping his beer.

“Me and Carm are actually attending dinner with her mother and some… business people…” Laura said, looking to Carmilla for help.

“My mother is selling one her businesses, she is meeting with some potential buyers.” Carmilla said, placing her arm along the back of Laura’s chair.

Laura thought back to the conversation she’d had with Carmilla on her couch almost two weeks ago.

 

_“Laura, I have another favor to ask of you…” Carmilla said, pulling her lower lip between her teeth._

_“What? What is it?” Laura’s stomach bottomed out as she wondered what Carmilla was about to ask._

_“My mother is meeting with some potential buyers in a couple weeks, those interested in the business, there’s going to be a dinner, my mother has asked me to attend and I was hoping you would accompany me?” Carmilla asked, giving Laura a hopeful smile._

_“Oh, okay, sure,” Laura wondered why she worried at all. “Is that it?”_

_“Of course,” Carmilla said, smiling and grabbing Laura’s hand in both of hers. “It will probably be extremely tiresome for you, for both of us but I would enjoy having you there.”_

_“Carm, of course, I’ll go,” Laura said, smiling as Carmilla planted a kiss on the back of her hand._

Laura had that to worry about now as well as the remainder of her father’s visit.

“Your mother is selling her company?” Rosie said with a frown, “ _MatchMaker,_ you mean?”

Carmilla nodded, “My mother possibly has her fingers in _one_ too many pies, so to speak, she’s trying to lighten the load and since me and William have no interest in taking the reins, she’s moving on. There’s some other projects she wants to dedicate her time too.”

“William?” Sherman asked.

“My brother,” Carmilla responded, “He’s predominately a clothing designer but he owns a few businesses around the city as well. He works hard.”

“Really?-” Sherman began and Laura found herself zoning out, she glanced at Carmilla and watched as she swiped her tongue over her lower lip before she began to speak.

How was it possible that Carmilla actually appeared to be more attractive to her now, she wanted to grab her and never let go. When Carmilla met her gaze Laura looked away quickly, grabbing her now empty beer bottle.

 “Can I get anyone another drink?”

“Please,” Carmilla said, leaning over and meeting Laura’s lips with her own quickly, before continuing her conversation with Sherman.

Laura was momentarily stunned, no matter how many times they kissed, she didn’t think she’d ever get used to it.

She sighed in the solitude of her kitchen as she pulled more beers from the fridge. It was all going well and Carmilla was right, it was just her dad, there was nothing to worry about.

“-In fact, there was a picture of her in the local newspaper that I think I still have in my wallet.” Sherman was saying as Laura returned to the table.

“Dad, what are you-”

“No, that’s her preschool pageant right there,” Sherman was showing Carmilla baby pictures from his wallet.

“What’s happening here?” Laura asked, placing down the bottles.

“Just showing Carmilla some photos,” Sherman said, smiling reminiscently.

“Some… oh god, this is what an aneurysm feels like,” Laura said covering her face with her hands. 

“This is her in her lady bug costume!” Sherman laughed, holding it out for Carmilla.

“Wow, now that is-” Carmilla started.

“You know what, I think it’s time for dessert, Carm, don’t you? Come and help me in the kitchen?!” Laura said, with a forced smile, grabbing Carmilla’s hand and tugging her up from her chair. 

*

 Laura stood at the bar waiting for her order, she glanced back at their booth, her father was laughing as he conversed with LaFontaine.

“It’s all gone very well,” Carmilla said, appearing at her side and leaning on the bar next to her.

“A little too well,” Laura said, her eyes wandering back over to the booth, “Are you worried LaF or Perry might give the game away?”

Carmilla shook her head, “Nah, LaF gets far too much enjoyment out of humiliating the two of us over this to give anything away.”

“How’d we end up on opposites sides of the table, I don’t like it,” Laura said, with a pout. Carmilla and her had had to sit on the opposite sides of booth as her father and Rosie had taken their usual seat.

Carmilla huffed a laugh, “Okay, I’ll just ask your father to move,” she joked. 

Laura smiled, “My dad really likes you, he’s going to be devastated when we break up,” Laura gave her father a sad smile from across the room, twirling a piece of Carmilla’s hair around her finger 

“No more than I will be,” Carmilla said, with a wink, grabbing the pitcher and glasses off the bar before Laura had the chance and swiftly moving back towards the booth, leaving Laura alone to roll her eyes, why did Carmilla have to say things like that?

“Laura Hollis?”

“What?” Laura said, turning in the direction she’d heard her name.

 “I thought it was you, _oh my god_ , you’re Laura Hollis from Silas News!” The voice belonged to a rather attractive woman, who took a seat at the bar right next to where Laura was standing. “Hi, I’m Mackenzie,” she held out her hand.

Laura was stunned a few more seconds before she took Mackenzie’s hand. She had long brown hair, up on top of her head and a sleeve of tattoos, she was the definition of cool and if her plaid shirt was anything to go by… definition of gay.

“Hi,” Laura swallowed, “I’m-”

 “Laura, I know, you’re a life saver for me. I've suffered with insomnia for a long time; your show keeps me entertained in the early hours when I can't sleep.”

“It does?” Laura smiled broadly.

“Yeah, I’m a big fan. Man, I wish my friend Carole was here, she loves you.”

“Really?” Laura sucked in a breath, feeling overwhelmed. She had a fan, someone watched her show, two people watched her show!

“Laura, can I buy you a drink?” Mackenzie asked with a smile.

“Yes! Sure, you actually watch my show?” Laura said, taking a seat on the stool next to Mackenzie.

“Sure, why is that so hard to believe?” Mackenzie replied as she signalled to the bartender.

“Because… nobody watches my show,” Laura said quickly.

Mackenzie blinked at her for a moment, before placing a hand on her arm, “Laura, you have quite the following. Have you ever googled yourself?”

Laura almost grimaced, “No, I can’t bring myself too, although my friend LaF loves to show me embarrassing videos of myself.”

Mackenzie chuckled, “What would you like?”

“Oh, just a beer please, Mike. Thank you,” Laura said.

“Do you have twitter?” She asked.

Laura shook her head, “Should I?”

“Girl, we need to get you a twitter and then you’ll see,” Mackenzie grinned.

Laura sipped her fresh beer, “Are you messing with me?”

“No, I would never,” she giggled, “So, you know the bartender by name… do you come here a lot?” Mackenzie asked, giving Laura an intent look.

“Yeah… yeah, I guess so,” Laura shrugged, feeling jittery.

“Cool, we should hang out sometime,” her new acquaintance grinned.

“Oh…” Laura blinked.

“I mean, not if you don’t want too,” she added, quickly. 

“No! It’s just, you’re- and I… I’m- I-” 

“Cupcake, your father’s leaving,” Carmilla was suddenly whispering in Laura’s ear.

“ _Carm,_ oh my dad! I’m soo sorry, I gotta say goodbye to my dad!” 

“I didn’t realise you were here with people, some other time maybe,” Mackenzie said with a cool wave of her hand.

“It was really great to meet you,” Laura said, jumping down from her stool.

“Don’t forget about that twitter,” Mackenzie said as Carmilla grabbed her hand and lead her back over to the booth.

“Dad, you’re not leaving yet?” Laura pouted.

“Honey,” her father smiled at her, “Gotta head back to the hotel. We’ve got a busy weekend ahead.”

Laura pulled her father into a hug, “Thanks for coming to see us, Dad.”

“Thank you for dinner and a lovely evening and of course you too Carmilla,” Sherman winked.

Laura turned to her step mother, “Rosie, I’ll see you soon.”

“Of course, thank you for dinner,” she said, pulling Laura into a hug.

“We’ll come by and see you on Monday afternoon before we leave, okay?” Sherman said and Laura nodded.

“Bye guys,” Laura said, sadly.

“See you guys soon,” Sherman spoke to everyone, giving a thumbs up.

 LaF shook Sherman’s hand, “See you soon, Mr Hollis!”

Laura sighed as she watched her father leave, giving him one last wave. 

“Carm,” Laura pouted, turning and resting her head on Carmilla’s shoulder, “He’s so happy for us and he really likes you!”

“Of course he does,” Carmilla responded, wrapping an arm around Laura’s shoulder. “Everyone likes me.”

 Laura huffed a laugh against her shoulder.

“I feel like an awful human being,” Laura groaned.

 Laura felt the vibration of Carmilla’s quiet laugh, and then a hand began massaging the back of her neck, “Hey,” Carmilla whispered, “You are not an awful human being.”

Laura looked up at her then and gave Carmilla a sad smile, “Thank you.”

Carmilla placed a kiss on the corner of Laura’s mouth. “Now come on, we finally got our seat back in the booth.”

“Laura, who’s that girl at the bar you were talking too?” LaFontaine asked as they took their seats.

“Huh? Oh, that’s Mackenzie," Laura looked in her direction, she was still at the bar.

“She’s a fan of mine!” She said proudly.

“A fan?” Carmilla raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, she watches my show and she said I have a _following_!” Laura beamed, glancing back over at her and giving Mackenzie a wave as their gazes met.

“How cool is that?” Laura said to the group.

“Laura, she’s still staring at you,” Carmilla frowned.

“Well, she’s a big fan, what can I say I’m a popular girl.” Laura smirked.

“Don’t let it get to your head or anything, L,” LaF laughed. 

“How lovely it must be,” Perry said, “…too finally get some recognition.”

“Exactly,” Laura said, pointing in Perry’s direction and taking a sip of her beer.

“She’s still looking over here,” Carmilla said, irritated.

“Let her stare,” Laura said, with a casual wave of her hand, sitting back in the booth.

“What if she follows you home or something…” LaF joked, glancing at the bar for a second and then back at Laura.

“What? Do you think she _would_?” Carmilla asked, sounding a little concerned.

“Of course she’s not going to follow me home,” Laura said, looking toward the bar and then back at her friends, “She won’t will she? Oh my god, I told her I come here often!”

“She asked you if you, ‘ _Came here often?_ ’” LaFontaine laughed.

“Not like that!” Laura said, “Guys, she’s not some crazy stalker!”

“I hope not,” Perry said, frowning in Mackenzie’s direction.

“I don’t like her,” Carmilla said, sipping her beer.

“Guys, can we talk about something else?” Laura said with a frown, deciding not to look in Mackenzie’s direction again.

“Sure, what do you guys wanna do this weekend?” LaF asked.

“Carm’s mom has an important dinner that we’re going to,” Laura said, picking the label on her bottle.

“I can’t really believe you two are still keeping up this whole dating thing,” LaF said, looking almost impressed.

“Well, we might not have too for much longer if all goes well on Saturday,” Carmilla said, looking a smidgen apprehensive. 

*

 Laura looked over at Carmilla as the cab pulled to a stop outside of _Sangiovese,_ “Are you ready?” Carmilla said, giving her a reassuring smile.

Laura nodded, “Do I have a choice?” Carmilla opened the door, pulling her long tailored coat tighter around herself against the brisk cold and then reached for Laura’s hand as she exited the cab.

A sudden flash blinded Laura and then another and another. Carmilla pulled her alongside, leading them into the restaurant.

“Was that… _paparazzi_?!” Laura asked, bewildered, blinking a number of times to try and clear her vision.

“It was,” Carmilla said, running a hand through her hair, “A lot of celebrities eat here, it’s quite a popular place.”

“Ah, Miss Karnstein, right this way if you please,” a smartly dressed gentleman led them to their table at the back of the restaurant.

Laura had definitely never eaten in such a swanky and classy looking place.

“Can I take your coats?” The gentleman asked as he pulled out their chairs for them.

Laura recognized Carmilla’s mother and several other faces at the table but couldn’t name any of them, she must have seen some of them at one of Lilita’s get-togethers. 

Carmilla removed her coat, revealing her crisp white shirt and her dark suit jacket. Laura had gone for a simple black dress she occasionally wore to work.

“Dear’s, you’re here! Laura fantastic to see you, as always!” Lilita said, launching herself toward them as Laura handed her coat over to the attendant.

 Carmilla hugged her mother and they spoke in a hushed tone for few seconds before Lilita pulled Laura into a hug. Laura smiled and tried her best to relax.

Carmilla began shaking hands with the other business people at the table and Laura just smiled and nodded uneasily, taking her seat.

She made eye contact with an elderly gentleman, she’d definitely met him before.

“Hello, Sir, how are you?” Laura asked, giving him what she hoped was a friendly smile.

“I’m very well, thank you, it is lovely to see you again. How are you fairing?” The gentleman asked.

Laura nodded, “I’m great, thank you, _starved_ ,” she smiled.

Carmilla took her seat, laying her arm casually along the back of Laura’s chair, leaning close.

“Do you recognize that old guy?” Carmilla whispered.

Laura nodded.

“You should, that’s Cornelius Vordenburg, you met him at New Years. He’s interested in a deal but mother will want things done her way, so this should be interesting.” Carmilla whispered quickly and then moved away, grabbing the drinks menu and holding it between them as she observed the others around the table.

“That guy on Vordenbergs left is his adoptive son, Theo. Vordenbergs getting on in years so I’m guessing his son will probably be more interested in this deal than he is.” Laura nodded, trying not to shiver as Carmilla spoke quietly into her ear.

 “The striking woman in the red dress, that’s Matska Belmonde, I’ve only met her once or twice before and she _usually_ gets what she wants.” 

Moving the menu away, Carmilla planted a kiss on Laura’s cheek, “Cupcake, order whatever you want, really, _whatever you want_.” She then turned to converse with her mother.

When drink orders were up, Laura ordered a pricey cocktail, which was delicious and fruity and amazing so she ordered another when the waiter brought over their bread, which Laura also happily helped herself too, not listening to much of the conversation at the table. She preferred to stare at the way Carmilla’s mouth moved as she spoke.

Laura picked at the wild rice concoction in front of her as conversation at the table became background noise, occasionally catching a word or two, although Carmilla did smile at her and knock their knees together under the table which made Laura perk up a little.

Carmilla then removed her jacket and Laura gawked at her as she casually rolled up the sleeves on her shirt a little. _Christ_ , Laura swallowed.

She ordered another cocktail when her cheese ravioli was placed in front of her as Lilita droned on about conglomerates and then Laura almost choked on it when Lilita yelled, “ _Win, win for everyone!”_ and frightened her half to death.

“Are you alright, Cupcake?” Carmilla asked, trying not to laugh.

“Yes,” Laura nodded, “Don’t worry about me, Carm, as long as they keep bringing these,” Laura pointed to her almost empty cocktail glass.

Carmilla signaled to a nearby waiter, “Hey, can I get two more of these cocktails, please?”

“Of course, ma’am,” the waiter said before quickly disappearing.

“Two? Carm, are you trying to get me drunk?” Laura giggled quietly.

Carmilla eyebrows rose in apparent surprise at Laura’s words, “Cupcake, you’re doing just fine on your own,” she bopped the end of Laura’s nose with her index finger, “… and the second is for me.”

Laura grabbed her hand which was still hanging the air and whispered, “So, how’s it going?”

“Okay, I think…” Carmilla glanced towards those at the table, and then back at Laura, “Matska is definitely interested but I think Vordenburg is already sold.” 

“Look at the two of you! So happy! What a perfect couple you make,” Lilita interrupted, gripping at Carmilla’s elbow. 

Carmilla turned to face the table again with a poised smile, “Me happy, Mother? I’ve never seen _you_ so happy!” Carmilla countered, her forced politeness making Laura want to laugh and roll her eyes.

“Well, Carmilla, I am… I’m _content_ , is the word I’m looking for, everything is perfect,” Lilita smiled at Laura.

“So, are you two lovebirds a product of Lilita’s business?” Matska Belmonde regarded the two of them.

“Oh, you mean, did we meet though _MatchMaker_? No, no we didn’t,” Carmilla said, shaking her head.

“We didn’t but my father met his wife through _MatchMaker_ ,” Laura spoke to table for the first time that evening, every person looked in her direction.

“Really?” Matska sat up in her chair, observing Laura closely.

“Yes, they’re just recently married actually and he’s… well he’s the happiest I’ve seen him in forever,” Laura said, seriously. “My dad was alone for long time after my mother died and I don’t think he thought he’d ever find anyone else.” Laura turned to Lilita, “I don’t know how you do it, Ms. Karnstein but... _you find soulmates_.”

There was a moment of silence, Lilita eyed Laura with a smile and wiped what appeared to be a tear away from her eye, “Well… for those who haven’t found theres on their own, of course. Thank you, Laura.”

From here followed more business talk, whilst dessert was served, Carmilla whispered in Laura’s ear as she ate her cheese cake. “That was perfect, I think you’ve got Matska sold.”

Laura looked up over the brim of her cocktail glass as Vordenburg spoke, “Lilita, lets lay it all out on the table, we’re interested,” he said gesturing to himself and his son.

“Great,” Lilita beamed, sitting up in her chair.

“Let’s not jump the gun just yet, Cornelius,” Matska spoke up after a short conversation with a gentleman beside her. “I’d also like to express my interest in the company.”

Laura stared, caught up as the conversation at the table grew interesting, Carmilla was smiling next to her.

“I have to say I couldn’t have asked for better, I must state now I have already met with a few other interested parties,” Lilita said.

“Of course,” Matska nodded, “I think we all need to revise our priorities at this point. Lilita, I’d love to meet with you again, on a one on one and discuss this further."

“As would I,” Vordenburg spoke up, wiping his brow with his napkin.

“Tremendous,” Lilita said, rising from her seat, her dessert untouched.

After some vigorous handshaking, more business talk and a row over who was going to pay for the meal, Carmilla took Laura’s hand and led her away from their table and over to the emptying bar.

“That went better than expected,” Carmilla said, after ordering two more fruity cocktails and pulling out a stool for Laura to sit on.

“I’m glad, what happens now?” Laura asked.

“Nothing is set in stone yet, they all could change their minds, it could take a few more months of negotiations, that sort of thing. I imagine Matska will get what she wants.” Carmilla said, then thanking the bartender for their drinks.

“Thanks for coming with me tonight,” Carmilla smiled almost nervously.

 “Carm,” Laura grabbed her hand, “I am your girlfriend remember.”

How easily those words seemed to slip off the tongue.

“Right, of course… girlfriend,” Carmilla nodded, licking her lower lip.

Laura who had been sipping her cocktail stopped when she noticed the rather serious expression on Carmilla’s face.

“What is it?” Laura asked, quietly.

 “Nothing” Carmilla said, shaking her head, “Just thinking about how this will all be over soon.” She focused on swilling the straw around her drink.

Those words were almost painful for Laura to hear right now, she couldn’t think of anything to say in reply, she stared at Carmilla a few seconds before looking down at the bar, sipping her drink.

*

 Carmilla helped Laura pull on her coat as they left the restaurant, “Cab should be here in three minutes,” Laura said, they came to a stop on the sidewalk.

 Pulling her close, Carmilla rubbed her hands along the tops of Laura’s arms in an attempt to generate some heat against the bitter cold.

 “Looks like it snowed again whilst we were in there,” Carmilla groaned, shoving her hands deep into the pockets of her long coat.

 There was a moment of silence and Laura stepped closer, her chin bumping off of Carmilla’s shoulder as she told herself she was trying to share body heat.

 “So… we’ll have to break up,” Laura stated, looking up and meeting Carmilla’s gaze. 

“When all of this is over, you mean,” Carmilla nodded, pulling a hand from her pocket to sweep a piece of Laura’s hair behind her ear.

“How?” Laura asked as they gazed at each other.

“Hmm?” Carmilla didn’t look as though she were listening to a word she was saying.

“How will we break up?” Laura asked, clearing her throat quietly.

Carmilla frowned, “I hadn’t given it much thought, Cupcake, I guess I’ll just ... tell mother it’s over and you can tell your father the truth and then… everything will just… go back to the way it was before.”

Laura nodded as they stared at each other, “… The way it was before.”

“You know, let’s not think about that right now,” Laura whispered, rocking forward on her toes and pressing herself closer.

 Carmilla smiled, pushing her lower lip between her teeth and Laura watched enthralled as her eyes slipped closed and Carmilla’s nose brushed against hers.

Laura sucked in a breath, her eyes closing as this moment seemed to drag on forever, their lips finally touching in an unhurried almost lazy kiss. They separated only for second before, before their lips met again. Carmilla’s hands which were still in her pockets came up to Laura’s waist, effectively wrapping her coat around her.

She opened her eyes slowly as the kiss came to an end, “For the paparazzi,” Carmilla whispered, “Might as well give them a photo or two to sell.

Laura blinked in confusion, before she heard the sounds of a camera and saw a flash from across the street.

She glanced in that direction, Carmilla’s arms still wrapped around her, “Why would they be interested in us?”

“Carmilla Karnstein, the daughter of Lilita Karnstein and Laura Hollis from Silas News? Of course they are interested in us.” Carmilla smirked, smugly and Laura shook her head.

Separating slowly as the cab pulled up next to them, Carmilla held open the car door for her, she gave the address of the bar as Carmilla climbed in after.

“The bar?”  Carmilla said quietly, giving her a questioning smile as the cab pulled away.

“The night is still young,” Laura gave an innocent sort of shrug, “Did you want to… go home?”

Carmilla gazed at her for a few seconds before replying, “Not… particularly,” she whispered.

“Good, that’s really…” Laura paused, getting lost in Carmilla’s dark eyes. She swallowed, thinking about that kiss and how easy it would be to just lean across and find Carmilla’s lips again.

She could… they’d kissed plenty of times before… it didn’t really mean anything, right?

Laura blinked at the sound of Carmilla’s phone buzzing, pulling it from within a pocket in her coat, “It’s my mom,” she mumbled, “Couldn’t have gone better. Thank you and thank your Laura for sealing the deal,” she read aloud.

Carmilla raised her eyebrows looking over at Laura as she pocketed her phone, “She’s happy… and that’s all that matters.” She leant her head back against the seat and closed her eyes, contented.

“Are _you_ happy?” Laura asked pulling at the sleeves on her coat.

“Ecstatic…” Carmilla whispered, unmoving. Laura shook her head, a little smile playing on her lips, sarcastic as always.

Laura studied her, her perfect jaw line prominent, her pale neck, she itched to touch, to explore…

“Are _you_ happy?” Carmilla mumbled after a moment, opening her eyes.

Laura gave a half shrug, considering the question, “I am?”

 Carmilla sat up and regarded her for a moment, “That didn’t sound very convincing, Cupcake.”

 Laura huffed a laugh, raking a hand through her hair. “Okay… I’m _moderately_ happy. How’s that?”

 Carmilla frowned, “No, I don’t think- Why?”

 Because it’s becoming impossible for me to deny my attraction to you anymore and the more time we spend together the more I like you and it’s breaking my heart that you don’t feel the same way, Laura shouted in her head.

 “Oh look, we’ve made it,” Laura sang, breathing a sigh of relief as the cab slowed to a stop.

 Laura jumped out quickly, “Come on, the bar awaits.”

Carmilla took her time, glancing up and down the street as she exited the cab and sauntered slowly up onto the sidewalk until she stood directly in front of Laura, “Actually, I kinda don’t feel like sharing you right now…”

 “Oh,” Laura frowned, a little taken aback at that rather odd statement, “Okay, let’s just… go up to my apartment then?”

 She grabbed Carmilla’s hand as she seemed to be unable to make a decision right now, “Come on,” she tugged and Carmilla moved along.

 They stood close in the elevator, Carmilla appeared to be lost in her own thoughts.

 “You’re not happy, Laura?” Carmilla said, turning to her with a look of concern.

 Laura sighed, of course, Carmilla wasn’t just going to drop this.

 “I’m ecstatic,” Laura said rather deadpan as the elevator doors opened and they started down the hall toward the apartment.

 “Well that’s obviously a lie,” Carmilla said as Laura searched for her keys.

 “That’s the exact response you gave me when I asked,” Laura responded, meeting her gaze before opening the door, beginning to feel a little annoyed.

 “Okay,” Carmilla said as they removed their coats, “What’s wrong?”

 Laura shook her head, switching on the overhead lights, “There’s nothing  _wrong_ , Carm. Look, we’re here now, I’m all yours.”

 Carmilla stared at her for a spell before she released a long sigh, shrugged off her suit jacket and pinched at the bridge of her nose, she then pulled at the collar of her shirt as if the fabric was beginning to restrict her, unfastening another button. She was visibly frustrated and Laura couldn’t help but feel unbearably attracted to her in that moment.

 She turned for the kitchen quickly, she needed to put some space between them.

 “Laura wait- don’t-” Carmilla moved to follow placing a hand on the top of Laura’s arm.

 Laura shrugged it off, “I’m just going to get a glass of water, Carmilla,” she couldn’t look at her, she was upset and she wasn’t even sure why and she couldn’t trust herself around Carmilla right now.

 She raked a hand through her hair as she disappeared into the kitchen, thankful that Carmilla hadn’t immediately followed her. She’d had a lot to drink, maybe it was the alcohol. She grabbed a glass of water, sipping it slowly as she leant on the counter.

 Okay, what was she going to do now? She’d just have to go out there, they could hug it out or something and then- Laura frowned, standing straight, what is that…

 She smiled, shaking her head, immediately feeling better as the first few bars of _Hungry Eyes_ began to echo around the apartment. What was Carmilla doing?

She wandered over to the kitchen doorway, leaning against it, the smile growing on her face as she met Carmilla’s eyes from across the room. She held out her hand and Laura couldn’t stop herself from scurrying over and wrapping her arms around Carmilla’s shoulders.

They swayed along to music for a moment, Carmilla whispered into her ear, “Is everything okay?”

Laura nodded, leaning her forehead on Carmilla’s with a sigh, her eyes closed. She was certainly happy now… more than happy, this was perfect.

Carmilla’s warm breath tickled her face, their noses bumping together as they continued to sway to the song. Neither of them attempting to make this moment something more… stuck on a precipice unable to fall… But then a hint, a slight brushing of lips, Laura was almost certain she had imagined it.

And then she felt it again, the faintest almost accidental brushing of their lips together. She let out a shuddering breath, Carmilla’s hands tightened on her waist and when their lips touched again, the very moment Laura couldn’t stand it anymore, she felt Carmilla inch closer, capturing Laura’s lips purposefully with her own. Carmilla made an uncharacteristic needy sort of whine that made Laura’s stomach clench and she slanted her mouth against Carmilla’s in a ravenous kiss, god, she could no longer hold back. She slid her hand into Carmilla’s soft hair, pulling her closer with her arm around her shoulder, rising up on her tippy toes.

 Carmilla’s hands became rather frenzied, gripping her waist tightly, then sliding her fingers into Laura’s hair and then running down her back to her hips, grasping the back of Laura’s thighs and lifting her and then they were falling onto the couch in a mess of limbs, their lips never parting.

 Laura moaned, pulling away for a second to suck in a breath before Carmilla’s lips found hers again. Her dress bunching up at the hips as Carmilla settled between her legs. Laura’s fingers scratching at her tight shirt to pull her even closer.

 And then everything was suddenly so silent, their harsh breathing sounding incredibly loud. Laura stilled, opening her eyes, trying to figure out what exactly was missing.

 Carmilla pulled away an inch, glancing down at her with confusion, their eyes meeting.

 It was the song; the song had ended.

 “Carm,” Laura whispered.

 Carmilla’s eyes quickly widened, a panic-stricken look, “Laura… Laura, I’m sorry that-”

 She stood up quickly, backing away, stumbling a little in her rush to put distance between them.

 “ _No_ -” Laura squeaked, a sudden rush of fear.

 “I’ve had a lot to drink, we both have,” Carmilla said hurriedly, pushing her hair away from her face.

 “No, no, it’s my- Carm, _don’t_ -” Laura stammered out, sitting up as Carmilla hastily grabbed her jacket and coat.

 “I’d better go, this never should have- it was just a mistake, I’m sorry, I really gotta-” Carmilla said.

 “Carm, wait-” Laura said, standing as she watched Carmilla leave, the apartment door banging behind her.

Laura shot across the room to the door, reaching out for the handle and then she paused, what was she doing? It was painfully obvious now that Carmilla wasn’t interested in her, was she trying to humiliate herself further? A mistake? … Carmilla thought this had been a mistake?

How could she let things go so far? She should have kept her distance. 

Laura almost laughed at the overwhelming embarrassment she felt, which developed into panic, she couldn’t take a deep enough breath. She needed to get out of this dress, it was suffocating her. She collapsed onto the couch as the tears began to overflow. She’d ruined everything…


	9. Completely Platonic Buddies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chaps a little shorter than what I would normally post but I needed to end it at the perfect place...

Laura blinked, slowly coming back to reality, realizing she was sat at her dining table in her pajamas. She lifted her coffee cup to her lips, grimacing as she swallowed down the liquid that had now turned cold. How long had she been sitting here?

She sighed and rubbed at her eyes, frustratedly. She’d not slept well but must have cried herself into exhaustion because when she did eventually sleep, her dreams were full of Carmilla, Carmilla’s lips… Carmilla’s hands… Laura shook her head to clear it.

What was she meant to do now? Go on as if nothing had happened? Even though she felt as though someone had ripped her heart out and stamped on it repeatedly?

Laura heard the ding of her phone alerting her she’d received a message, she didn’t move to retrieve it but continued to stare into space. She really needed to talk to LaF and Perry about all of this. She could already see LaF’s smug expression after they’d warned her multiple times about getting involved in Carmilla’s scheme. 

Her phone dinged again and Laura glanced in the direction of the sound. What if it was Carmilla? The idea made Laura’s stomach squirm.

She rose to her feet unenthusiastically, not bothering to wash up her coffee cup, searching the couch for her phone. She found it under the living room table. How it managed to get there she’d never know. 

It was Danny inviting her to movie night tomorrow… Laura didn’t think she could face everyone right now. Or face Carmilla ever again… 

*

 She knocked on LaF’s apartment door, pulling at the sleeves of her sweater apprehensively after a moment the door swung open and Perry appeared.

“Laur… _what’s wrong_?” She frowned with worry, looking quickly over her shoulder and then back at Laura.

Christ, she must look awful.

“Are you both here? I need to speak with you both,” she walked straight passed Perry into the apartment.

She only managed about three more steps before she found herself two feet away from Carmilla, sat on the arm of LaF’s couch.

She froze.

“Carm…” Laura said, sucking in a breath at her unexpected presence there.

“Laura?” Carmilla stood up, they stared at each other.

“I was…” She cleared her throat, “I just came by to- to get my… umm… actually I left it in the kitchen,” Laura turned on her heel, moving quickly for the kitchen, grabbing Perry’s arm.

“What is Carmilla doing here?” Laura whispered through gritted teeth, leaning on the counter.

“Why? What are _you_ doing here?” Perry whispered back, looking at her as if she’d grown an extra head, “Laura, I really don’t mean to be rude but you look a little… exhausted?”

Laura hated that her next immediate thought was, crap, how could she let Carmilla see her like this? She shook her head, getting back on topic. 

“I really need to speak to you and LaF about something,” she said, running a hand through her bedraggled hair, “What is Carmilla doing here?" 

Perry lifted her hands in a _no idea_ kind of way, “She said she needed to speak to LaFontaine.”

Laura frowned, glancing toward the kitchen doorway and then pressing on, “What about? Did she say why?”

“She never got that far, Laura, she arrived only a moment or two before you did. What’s going on?”

“I can’t…not when-“ Laura sighed, “Carmilla’s here – I gotta go, right now but I’ll talk to you later.”

“Yes, sure, of course, are you sure everything is alright, Laura?” Perry asked, concerned.

Laura nodded, “Not now.”

She turned, grabbing a bowl off the counter.

 “Got my… _bowl back_ ,” Laura said, loudly.

She left the kitchen, a hushed conversation between Carmilla and LaF came to an abrupt halt.

“See ya guys,” Laura said forcefully, not meeting anyone’s gaze.

“Where are you going, Laura?” Carmilla asked unexpectedly.

Laura stopped and turned slowly.

“Home with my… bowl,” Laura said, slowly, staring at Carmilla. Her heart beating a thousand times a minute. She couldn’t breathe, Carmilla looked troubled.

“Wait, I can-” Carmilla began, taking a step in her direction.

“No, actually, I need to speak with you for a little while,” LaFontaine said, grabbing Carmilla’s elbow.

“Okay?” Laura shrugged, secretly very grateful to LaF for stopping Carmilla from approaching her.

Carmilla gazed at her for a second or two longer before shrugging off LaF’s hand and sitting on the couch.

“Bye guys,” Laura said, heading for the door and getting out of that apartment and away from Carmilla as quickly as possible.

Laura stayed away from the bar that night, she told herself she wasn’t hiding, she just didn’t feel like socializing, that was all. She told Perry she was busy making arrangements for some work thing, she didn’t go into any specifics and surprisingly no one questioned her when in reality she watched Netflix and went to bed super early. Similarly to the previous night, sleep seemed to avaid her and Laura kept reliving what happened over and over again, letting the agony she felt fill her up. 

*

 Laura scowled, grabbing a bottle of water from her fridge, no alcohol tonight, no alcohol ever again. She sighed, she was annoyed, LaF, Perry and Danny had said they were coming over for a Harry Potter marathon (Laura needed the distraction) and they hadn’t showed!

She fell onto the couch, checking her phone automatically and then sitting up quickly, a nauseous feeling coming over her. A missed call from Carmilla, _a missed call from Carmilla?!_ Laura almost threw the phone. _Christ_ , she couldn’t talk to Carmilla right now!... or ever again! 

Where was everyone?! 

At that precise moment, the apartment door opened and LaFontaine appeared looking a tad disheveled, “Grab your stuff, I convinced Carmilla to have us over at her place to watch the movies on her huge tv!” They beamed, “Thank me later! Hurry, Per and Danny are waiting in a cab downstairs!” 

“Wait, what?! _Why?_ Why are we going to Carmilla’s? I thought- I thought we were-” Laura stood, starting to panic, this was the exact opposite of what she wanted from today.

LaF ushered Laura out the door, “L, the moment you saw Carmilla’s tv, you’ve been dreaming about this! I asked her and she said _finally_ said _yes_! We should take what we can get!”

Laura barely had time to consider what was happening, or make up an excuse, as she climbed into the cab with LaFontaine, seated between Perry and LaF, Danny took the front passenger seat.

It didn’t take long for Perry to start asking questions, “Laura is everything okay? You wanted to talk to us about something yesterday? It seemed important.”

Danny turned, staring into the back seat, all eyes on Laura. 

“I- I- it’s nothing, it’s really nothing, it doesn’t matter. In fact, I don’t even remember what it was, that’s how much it doesn’t matter.” Laura rambled.

“Are you sure?” Danny asked, frowning.

“Guys, really, I’m fine,” Laura said, feeling sick and jumpy.

Laura was almost shaking with nerves by the time they reached Carmilla’s apartment. _Why was she here?! What had she done to deserve this?_ She thought as they stepped off the elevator on Carmilla’s floor.

“Hi guys,” Laura heard Carmilla say, she kept her eyes glued to the ground.

As they entered the apartment, Laura glanced up, of course, she looks impeccable and she’s wearing the leather pants. Laura immediately wanted to keel over in the fetal position, this was so painful. 

And then their eyes met and Carmilla was expressionless and she stared at Laura as she walked over the threshold, Laura couldn’t even speak, she didn’t need to as LaF started the conversation.

 “We got popcorn that needs popping and beers that need refrigerating! We probably won’t make it through all the films today, we probably won’t even make it number four but we can try our best!” LaF said, almost like they were barking military orders.

Whilst Carmilla was busy helping LaF in her kitchen area, Laura distracted herself by setting up the tv, not daring to look over at Carmilla. _What was she doing here? This was literally the last place she wanted to be right now._  

“Laura?” Oh god, that was Carmilla, Carmilla was talking to her. She immediately stiffened, turning slowly and meeting Carmilla’s eyes. “Can I… Could I borrow you for a moment?” She looked a tad uncertain.

Laura nodded slowly, staring at Carmilla, who gestured toward her bedroom.

What was she going to say? Laura could only imagine, Hey Laura, so I’ve decided after what happened the other night, I’m not sure we should be friends anymore… you can show yourself out. 

Laura swallowed, following Carmilla, her hands shaking.

Carmilla turned and reached past her to push the bedroom door closed quickly, making Laura lean away at the unexpected closeness, “I’m glad you came, I wasn’t sure you would after what happened…” Carmilla said, taking a deep breath.

Laura was sure Carmilla expected her to say something then but she couldn’t speak, in fact Laura hadn’t said a word since she’d left the cab, so a moment of complete silence past.

 “Look,” Carmilla continued, rubbing the back of her neck, “The other night, I’m sorry, I’m _really_ sorry about what happened, I hope I haven’t made things-”

“Carm, no, it’s fine, like you said, it was a mistake,” Laura said, quickly, twisting her hands together.

“ _Exactly_ , a complete mistake,” Carmilla said, “I think we’ve let his relationship thing… get to our heads,” Carmilla finished her sentence in a whisper.

They stared at each other.

“And obviously… it won’t happen again,” Laura said, taking a step back and bumping into Carmilla’s bedroom door.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Carmilla whispered, her stare was intense.

“Cause we’re friends…” Laura gave a curt nod.

“Good…” Carmilla swallowed. “So, we’re okay?”

“Never better,” Laura forced a smile. 

 Carmilla took a step closer and Laura felt a surge of panic until Carmilla pulled her into a hug, her hand landing on the back of Laura’s head as she held her closely. Laura gave into the hug, of course she did, she squeezed her arms around Carmilla’s waist, as she felt tears sting her eyes. As much as she liked the hug, as much as she craved it, it was agony.

“ _Laura_ ,” Carmilla said her name almost with relief, her hand sliding down to Laura’s neck as she pulled away and their eyes met.

Laura had about a split second where she realized that she wasn’t going to be able to hold back and in that split second, she didn’t care because maybe if she felt Carmilla’s lips against hers just _one more time_ … even if she ruined everything, just _once more_ , then maybe that would be enough.

They collided in a frantic rush, Laura couldn’t stop herself from moaning with relief when their lips met. Carmilla making a similar desperate sounding groan which made Laura yank her closer, her head thumping the bedroom door as she pulled at Carmilla’s hair.

“Guys, Laura? Hurry up or else we’ll start the movie without you!” Danny yelled from the other side of the door.

They froze and drew away from each other quickly, both breathing heavily, “Yep, be right there!” Laura squeaked out, her eyes never leaving Carmilla’s.

Laura cleared her throat and ran a hand through her hair as Carmilla corrected her shirt, “Well...” Carmilla said raspingly, wiping her mouth, “I’m sorry about that happening… _again_ ,” she looked down guiltily, her hands were clenched into fists.

“No, I’m so-,” Laura interjected.

“Laura-”

“The movie, they’re waiting,” Laura urged, giving herself one more second to compose herself before opening the door and heading back into the living room.

“ _Finally!_ Guys, what were you doing in there?” LaF said, hitting play on the film.

Danny, Perry and LaF had taken up the prime positions on Carmilla’s large leather couch leaving only the love seat left, _great_ , looked like they’d be sitting together…

They sat the furthest away from each other the chair would allow. Laura leaned toward the arm of the chair and twisted her fingers together in case she forgot and accidently touched Carmilla, she stared at the tv screen but she wasn’t seeing a thing.

After about 15 minutes of this agony, Laura looked over, she couldn’t stop herself and looked away just as quickly. Carmilla’s lips looked so red and kissable. God, what was this torture?!

What was that kiss about? If that was a mistake Laura wanted to make that mistake again and again and never stop making that mistake. Carmilla’s arm stretched along the back of the seat, so close but yet they still weren’t touching, Laura had to look again, she always had to look at Carmilla.

 _Christ,_ Carmilla was already looking at her, Laura tried to smile and Carmilla seemed completely unbothered by all this and continued to study her intently. She could feel her face heating up and Laura squeezed her clammy hands together tightly, she couldn’t hold eye contact, she looked away.

Oh god, Carmilla loomed closer in her peripheral vision and Laura couldn’t breathe.

 “Relax, Laura,” Carmilla whispered in her ear, almost inaudibly.

Laura tried not to shiver, the way she whispered her name! Yep, now she could relax, very relaxed indeed! Laura was almost certain she was going to have a heart attack before the end of the night.

“You know…” Carmilla moved an inch closer, she separated Laura’s tense hands with one of her own, her thumb rubbing the back of Laura’s wrist, “I’ve never seen one of these Potter films before…”

Well, you haven’t watched much of this one either! Laura _wanted_ to yell but instead she said, “Then this is just great… _pal_!”

Okay, so that came out a little louder than intended, everybody looked at her. Laura rubbed at her temple, this is the sort of situation where she would have a beer, try and unwind but alcohol definitely wasn’t a good idea… or was it? She’d have just the one, at least then she’d have something to do.

“I’m just gonna grab a beer,” Laura whispered, standing, walking around the back of the leather couch as to not disrupt the others and over to the fridge. How long could she realistically stand in the kitchen area without the others questioning it? She opened her beer and leaned on the counter, she could still see the tv from here, of course she could it filled almost an entire wall.

She sipped the drink, her position now putting her directly in front of Carmilla from across the room. Laura watched the tv for a moment before her gaze shifted to Carmilla… those leather pants, Laura couldn’t count the amount of times she had wanted to run her hands all over them… because that was something that a friend would think about doing. She shook her head.

Carmilla was looking at her again, Laura couldn’t help but smile when she tapped the chair next to her, urging her back to her seat, well if that wasn’t incredibly inviting…

Laura had to restrain herself from scrambling across the room in a rush to get back to Carmilla. When she eventually reached her side again, she relaxed properly onto the chair, their legs touching. Carmilla squeezed her knee for a moment in a reassuring way that helped to ease the ache that Laura felt inside.

She felt completely relaxed now, this was nice. She offered her beer to Carmilla and they shared it, Laura getting caught up in the way Carmilla drank from the bottle… fantastic, now absolutely anything Carmilla did was beyond appealing. Laura didn’t even have the will to pretend to herself otherwise.

The second film started and Carmilla whispered, “Okay, so, what’s this one about?”

Laura frowned, “You gotta watch it, Carm.”

Carmilla sighed as if that idea disappointed her and stretched out her legs, without giving it any thought Laura reached over to brush a piece of lint off of Carmilla’s thigh. She then rubbed her thumb over an annoying wrinkle in the leather, trying to flatten it out. Carmilla’s thigh muscle tightened, her hand landing on top of Laura’s.

“Sorry, you had um.... something on your leg,” Laura whispered, her face starting to heat up, turning slowly to look at her, her eyes immediately looking at Carmilla’s mouth as she licked her lower lip.

Carmilla didn’t respond as they gazed at each other but her thumb ran over Laura’s knuckles as she held her hand and then her grip loosened and she moved her hand away, leaving Laura’s hand resting on her thigh.

Laura didn’t know what to do, should she pull her hand away? Under any other circumstances, she wasn’t sure her hand resting on Carmilla’s thigh would have even have been something she’d have thought about, but after the events of the last few days, she questioned every touch between them.

Deciding to move her hand, it was probably for the best, Laura allowed herself to indulge and made sure to run her fingers down Carmilla’s thigh as she pulled her hand away in what she hoped seemed like a natural movement but was rather exciting for her. She’d _finally_ ran a hand over Carmilla’s leather pants, she internally congratulated herself.

Carmilla sucked in a deep breath and Laura glanced at her, Carmilla stared at the tv, gnawing her lower lip.

Lauras eyes started feel heavy, she hadn’t slept properly in two days, her head was all fuzzy. She tried to follow along with the film but every time she blinked she felt she’d missed a scene or two. She was so tired, she’d just rest her head on Carmilla’s shoulder for a second, just for a second because that was okay… Carmilla wouldn’t mind that…

 

 She blinked her eyes open, where was she? Ah, her head was resting on a pillow, Prisoner of Azkaban was on, this was her favorite… _oh god, I’m lying on Carmilla’s lap_. She turned suddenly and looked up at Carmilla who smiled down at her. 

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” she said quietly.

Laura sat up slowly, Christ, she’d been tired but she didn’t think he was _that_ tired. How long had seen been asleep for? She grabbed Carmilla’s arm and checked the time on her wrist.

“Crap, I have to go home! I have to work tomorrow!” Laura said, standing, “Crap, crap, crap,” it was almost 11, she needed to be at work in 5 hours.

Everyone looked over at her as she stood, searching the floor for her shoes.

“Oh good, I’m beat anyway. We can finish this another time,” LaF said, stretching as they stood.

Danny agreed with a nod, “You don’t realize how long these films are,” she got to her feet.

“We need to call a cab, since you’re in a hurry Laura, me and LaF will just stay at over at our place, so we’re going to the same place.”

“Yeah, good idea,” Laura nodded as she pulled on her shoes, moving across the room to grab her coat and smiled when Carmilla had already grabbed it for her.

“Thanks,” she said quietly, giving Carmilla a small wary smile.

“We’ll see ya tomorrow, Carm,” LaF said walking toward the door, the others in toe, all pulling on their coats.

Laura couldn’t stop herself from lingering in the doorway as the others piled out.

“Goodnight, Carm,” she said, anything for just a few more seconds of time with Carmilla.

“Goodnight Cupcake,” Carmilla smiled.

Laura smiled to herself as she left, she was glad she’d gone to Carmilla’s today. It had all been fine and Carmilla was still the same Carmilla she’d always been and she still wanted to be in Laura’s presence and she still wanted to be friends and that kiss… maybe they needed to talk about that kiss…

*

 And so, everything went back to normal, the group sat in their usual booth at the bar the next evening, Carmilla at her side as she always was. And it was great… no awkwardness at all… that was until Danny and Kirsch went to the bar at the exact same time Perry and LaF visited the bathroom.

A moment of silence, Laura looked sideways at Carmilla who gave her a small smile.

“So-, this is-” Laura began.

“Did you-” Carmilla spoke at the same time, they both paused.

“Go ahead,” Carmilla said.

“Carm, this is…  uncomfortable, isn’t it?” Laura said, feeling the need to just address it now, running the fingers over the grooves in the table.

Carmilla half shrugged, “A little, it’s my fault, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t say that, we just need to-" 

“Laura,” Mike the bartender approached the booth, “This was left for you, sorry I forgot.” 

He held out a folded piece of paper.

“For me?” Laura frowned, taking it from him. “Thank you.”

_Laura, couldn’t miss the opportunity to give you my number…_

_If you want to hang out some time, give me a call – Mac x_

“Oh… Mackenzie,” Laura nodded as she finally understood.

“Who?” Carmilla said, leaning closer to read the note.

 “You know, the girl from the other night,” Laura said, reading the note again.

Carmilla opened her mouth to speak but then sipped from her glass instead.

Laura folded the note, not really sure what to do with it, she shoved it into her back packet.

“Are you… going to give her a call?” Carmilla asked quietly as LaF and Perry returned to table, chatting among themselves.

Laura shrugged, “I can’t really… I mean we’re still… doing what we’re doing,” she said gesturing between the two of them.

 “Right,” Carmilla nodded.

“Do you… not want me too?” Laura asked, glancing sideways at her, unsure.

“Doesn’t matter what I want, Cupcake, does it?” Carmilla shrugged but her expression was serious and she stared at her.

“Umm…” Laura blinked, picking at the label on her bottle. 

“Drinks up!” Kirsch said loudly as he and Danny returned to the booth, officially ending their whispered conversation.

An hour later, Laura pulled on her coat.

“Where you going, L?” LaF frowned.

“Guy’s, I always have work,” Laura pouted.

“Ah, of course,” LaF nodded.

“Have a good night, Laura,” Perry waved.

“See you guys,” Laura said as she stood from the booth.

“I’ll walk you back,” Carmilla said, standing as well.

“No, Carm,” Laura shook her head. “Sit down.” 

“I want to,” Carmilla replied with certainty, pulling on her jacket.

“So… about what happened the other day… at your place,” Laura said, not daring to look at Carmilla as they reached the quiet street outside.

“Hmm… _that_ ,” Carmilla said, shoving her hands into her pockets as they walked side by side.

“That won’t… be a thing that will… happen again?” Laura said, slowly, staring at the ground.

“Right,” Carmilla replied quickly, “Of course.”

Their arms brushed together.

“Good because…” Laura looked across at her. “… that would be…”

They stopped outside her apartment building.

“Bad… that would be bad.” Laura finished. 

They stared at each other, “Look at us now, no desperate kissing, no awkwardness just… good old fashioned _platonic_ buddies.” She said with a nod.

She grabbed Carmilla’s face, their lips meeting harshly, releasing a breathy moan as Carmilla pushed herself closer. Carmilla groaned, clutching at her collar of Laura’s coat, neither of them willing to be the first to pull away. Carmilla bit down on Laura’s lip causing her to whimper and pull at the hair on the back of Carmilla’s neck which seemed to spur her on. Carmilla’s hand slipped into her coat, gripping at Laura’s waist, pulling their bodies together.

A car horn beeped loudly, startling them, they pulled away from each other. 

There was a moment of silence as they stared, breathing quickly. Carmilla rubbed the back of her neck. Laura although a little embarrassed couldn’t even feel guilty about this anymore, she wanted it too much. She could no longer feel the pain either as her body hummed with excitement.

Christ, why are they still in the street.

“So, um… we should talk,” Carmilla said, pushing her unkempt hair away from her face. 

Laura nodded slowly, “Yes… _talk_ … talking would be good.”

She turned on her heel, climbing the steps to her building and holding open the door.

“Come on… let’s go upstairs and… talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading and the positive feedback, especially considering how long it can take me to write sometimes. 
> 
> So... this chapter has gone in a completely different direction than what I had originally planned but new ideas came to me and I had to write it!


	10. And so, it all boils down to this

Laura chewed her lip as she hit the button for her floor, turning to Carmilla who had leaned against the elevator back wall, her eyes lingering on Laura as the doors closed.

“So…” Laura said, moving to stand close to her as they began to move, “What d’ya wanna talk about?” She smiled, hoping to diffuse the building tension. 

Carmilla laughed silently, her eyes shone beautifully as she smiled and Laura felt helplessly enthralled. She dipped her head closer and Laura released a shaky breath, leaning closer.

“Laura…” Carmilla whispered. Laura’s eyes opened slowly and Carmilla nodded behind her, the elevator doors had opened. A little embarrassed, Laura moved quickly down the hall to her door, feeling Carmilla following closely behind.

As she searched for her keys, Laura felt her hair being shifted aside, the air leaving her lungs as she felt Carmilla’s breath on her neck, momentarily closing her eyes at the feeling. She tried to quickly open her door, jabbing the key toward the lock but then she felt Carmilla’s nose just grazing her neck making her pause in anticipation, followed by feather light kisses, making Laura shiver and forget where she was. Her hand slipped up into Carmilla’s hair to press her closer, turning her head as to try and catch Carmilla’s lips with her own.

“Laura, door,” Carmilla whispered in her ear, continuing to kiss down her throat.

Laura hummed, not really understanding or caring about anything but how good Carmilla’s lips felt on her skin.

“Okay… I’ll do it,” Carmilla smiled against her skin, running a hand down Laura’s still outstretched arm towards the key. 

“What?... oh,” Laura shook her head, coming back to herself, what the hell was wrong with her.

 Carmilla laughed as Laura opened the door, turning as soon as they moved over the threshold, sinking her hand into Carmilla’s hair and bringing her head down to hers. Carmilla hummed into the kiss, her hands sliding down Laura’s back to her hips and pulling her closer. Laura sighed contentedly, nothing else mattered when Carmilla was kissing her.

Sucking in a deep breath as they eventually separated, Laura started pulling off her coat, talk… they were going to talk about this. She’d only managed to get as far as one arm out of her coat when Carmilla began kissing her again. God, how’d she ever be around Carmilla and not kiss her? How would she ever be able to do that again?

 “Wait, wait-” Laura said, taking a small step back and removing her coat, taking some much-needed breaths. 

“You need to… go over there,” Laura said, pointing to the dining table and chairs, not daring to look at Carmilla while she was this close.

Carmilla smirked, pulling off her jacket, flinging it onto the couch, “Sure, Cutie,” she sauntered over to the dining table and instead of sitting down on one of the chairs, she moved the chair away and sat down on the table.

Laura nodded, chewing her lip as she hung up her coat, she ran a hand through her hair before turning and facing Carmilla from across the room.

“So…” Laura’s fingers began to tangle together anxiously.

Carmilla licked her lower lip, leaning back casually on the table.

“So…” Carmilla repeated.

Talk… say something Laura… anything!

Laura frowned to herself, Carmilla was maybe a little _too_ far away. She moved closer and then closer still until she could, if she wanted too, reach out and touch her but she wouldn’t because they were going to talk. So… no kissing and no touching either. 

“About the other night…” Laura said, looking at Carmilla’s knee rather than her face. “That was- well, I guess this is _all_ very… _new_.”

Carmilla leaned forward, nodding. “Sure.”

“And,” Laura swallowed, her hand landing on Carmilla’s knee, tracing the lines in the fabric of her dark jeans. “…We seem to be on the same page here, right?”

She looked up, meeting Carmilla’s gaze, who leaned closer with a smile and captured Laura’s lips in a slow kiss, “Correct.”

Laura’s hands slipped up Carmilla’s thigh slowly as they kissed again.

Carmilla pulled her closer and Laura’s hand came up to trace Carmilla’s jawline, her perfect kissable jawline, pulling away from the kiss and immediately attaching her lips to Carmilla’s jaw.

Carmilla sucked in a deep breath, her hands finding the edge of Laura’s shirt and slipping underneath, just grazing the skin of her abdomen, her cold fingers making Laura gasp. Her lips moving to suck at the skin of Carmilla’s throat which caused Carmilla to groan and grasp the back of her head.

“Oh crap,” Laura whispered, giving in completely and finding Carmilla’s lips again with urgency.

Carmilla made another pleasant sound as Laura sucked at her lower lip, she grabbed handfuls of Laura’s shirt, trying to pull her closer then gave up, slipping off the table.

Laura took a step back, smiling as Carmilla pouted and tried to follow her lips. Instead she grabbed Carmilla’s hand and tugged her across the room. Carmilla impatiently pulled her closer again, slipped Laura’s hair aside, her lips brushing her neck making Laura shudder and bite down on her lip as they moved slowly toward the bedroom. She chuckled against her throat as Laura almost tripped on a loose shoe, hands grabbed her waist to steady her.

Carmilla found her lips again before they even reached the bedroom, stumbling over the threshold together. Laura toed off her shoes as Carmilla’s tongue worked its way into her mouth. They fell onto the bed in a heap, Carmilla kicked off her boots quickly before crawling back up Laura’s body to find her lips again, humming as their bodies aligned. 

After a moment, Laura smiled into the kiss, feeling a little overwhelmed by what was happening.

“Okay?” Carmilla breathed against her lips.

Laura nodded and Carmilla moved to kiss down her jaw to her throat. Laura sucked in a deep breath, running her hands down’s down her back and pulling up Carmilla’s shirt. Carmilla sat up, pulling it quickly over her head before attacking Laura’s lips again.

“Why have we never done this before?” Laura asked, breathlessly, her hands running up and down the soft skin of Carmilla’s back.

Carmilla kissed her again before answering, “Cupcake, I’ve been asking myself the same question,” as she pulled Laura’s shirt over her head and quickly discarded it.

Carmilla’s lips attached themselves to her collarbones. Laura sighed, her hands knotted in Carmilla’s hair, as she started kissing down her chest. Carmilla’s wandering hands sneaked up to tickle her ribs and knead at her breasts, making Laura gasp, her hips shifting uncomfortably until Carmilla’s hips shifted back against hers. Laura moaned as they kissed and Carmilla pulled away whispering, “ _Laura,_ ” quickly undoing Laura’s bra and pulling it away from her arms.

Breathing heavily, Carmilla leaned her forehead on Laura’s, glancing down her body, groaned feebly and rocked her hips again as Laura’s fingers worked at removing Carmilla’s bra. 

Once it was discarded, Carmilla bit down on Laura’s lip before running her tongue over it, making Laura whimper and pull at the button on Carmilla’s jeans in the very small space between their bodies as Carmilla’s hands itched along her ribs.

“You make the most delightful sounds,” Carmilla whispered against her lips.

Carmilla kissed her hard before pulling back and unfastening Laura’s jeans, tugging them down her thighs until she became distracted by Laura’s chest and gave up. Sucking the underside of one of her breasts before teasing the nipple with the tip of her tongue. Laura groaned, her hands sliding into Carmilla’s hair, biting her lip as she sucked the nipple into her mouth.

Laura managed to kick her jeans the rest of the way off, Carmilla’s lips returned to hers, her hips shifting against Laura’s.

“Off,” Laura moaned, pulling at the hem of Carmilla’s jeans, her fingers scratching at her abdomen.

Carmilla chuckled, pushing up on her knees and pulling her jeans down as far as they would go and then stood quickly, pulling them off.

“Where were we?” She smiled as she crawled back on top. 

Laura’s hands slid into her hair, pulling Carmilla back down with a kiss. 

After a moment, Carmilla’s fingers began to play with the edge of Laura’s underwear and then she pulled away an inch, her eyes dark and heavily lidded and looked at her intently. Laura closed her eyes, pulling her lower lip between her teeth for fear she may moan embarrassingly, she reached down, sliding down her own underwear as Carmilla watched. 

“Do you have _any idea_ how beautiful you are, Laura?” Carmilla murmured, running her nose along her jawline.

Laura felt her face heat up and then couldn’t stop the gasp as Carmilla’s fingers slipped down her body and grazed her clit just lightly, silenced by Carmilla’s lips. 

Her thighs jerked as she began to rub with more intent and then Laura frowned when she stopped and pulled away from her lips as well.

She moved slowly down her body, paying special attention to her breasts and then her hipbones, sucking at them lightly until Laura began to writhe and gasp for breath at the anticipation and then finally settled between her legs. She blew cold air on her teasingly and Laura spread her legs further apart eagerly.

“Carm…” she whispered desperately.

Carmilla’s tongue poked out circling her clit and Laura gasped, her hips moving with a mind of their own.

Carmilla chuckled, pushing her hips back down before going to work. She doesn’t waste any more time, sucking her clit between her lips as Laura’s hands found her hair, knotting her fingers in it.

Her tongue teased for a few moments until Laura moaned, “ _Please_ …” Carmilla groaned at that, sliding a hand up Laura’s thigh to her center, teasing her entrance until Laura whined with frustration which turned into a gasp as she thrust a finger inside. 

Laura’s fingers tightened in Carmilla’s hair as she added a second finger and sucked her clit back into her mouth. She moaned, a long drawn out moan, god, she’d never been so responsive to sex like this before. 

Her hips began to grind desperately against Carmillas fingers, as the sensations already began to build. 

“Carm…” she whimpered. Laura wasn’t even sure what more she was asking for but she knew she needed it now.

“Hmm?” Carmilla groaned against her causing a heavenly vibration.

She sucked in some ragged breaths, squeezing her eyes shut, she was almost there…

Carmilla’s tongue rubbed firmly at her clit, her fingers curving and Laura tried to keep her mouth sealed shut and failed.

“ _Oh go- Carm!”_ Her finger’s pulled Carmilla’s hair as she came, her legs quivering, her rocking hips faltered just for a moment and then she moaned gutturally and continued, trembling as Carmilla continued to touch.

She relaxed with pleasant hmm, breathing erratically still, wiping sweat from her brow.

Carmilla crawled back up her body with a smirk, kissing her here and there, sucking at her collarbones.

“Oh my god, Carm,” Laura moaned, breathlessly before Carmilla kissed her.

Laura brought her hands up to Carmilla’s face, “That… was incredible,” she said as she kissed her again, shifting so she could push Carmilla onto her back. 

“Your turn…” Laura smiled against her lips.

“If this is a dream, I’m going to be so pissed when I wake up,” Carmilla whispered.

“Have you dreamt about us before?” Laura asked, teasingly, she couldn’t stop herself from rocking just a little against Carmilla’s thigh.

Carmilla kissed her, her hands gripping Laura’s hips. “Hmmm, Laura, you have no idea…”

 That thought made Laura shudder as her hand slipped down to Carmilla’s underwear, slowly pulling them down.

She moaned into Carmilla’s mouth as her fingers found her wet entrance and began stoking at her clit lightly. Carmilla groaned, her hips rocking as Laura’s other hand found her breast.

She kissed Laura firmly, shivering as she rubbed at her clit. Laura separated their lips, sucking at Carmilla’s neck as she pushed a finger inside, Carmilla moaned. 

“ _God_ ,” Laura sighed, Carmilla moaning was her new favorite sound, she needed to hear it every day for the rest of her life.

Carmilla hips moved with Laura’s fingers and Laura lifted her head and gazed down at her face, watching her pull her bottom lip between her teeth. She leaned down kissing her and pulling her bottom lip between her own teeth as she rubbed the palm of her hand against Carmilla’s clit.

It didn’t take long for Carmilla to begin to falter and quiver, her legs stretching out. She moaned Laura’s name, and Laura gasped, grinding hard against Carmilla’s thigh at the sound.

She bit down on Laura’s neck and Laura moaned in renewed excitement, breathing heavily as Carmilla kissed her frantically, her hands finding Laura’s hips as she urged her on… 

*

 “… okay, so that happened,” Laura said, staring wide eyed at her bedroom ceiling, pulling the sheets up to her chest, shivering as the sweat turned cold on her skin.

Carmilla moaned sleepily, pulling Laura close with an arm around her waist and planting a few kisses on her shoulder and neck.

“That’s a thing that just happened,” Laura blinked, swallowing.

“Four times,” Carmilla whispered, nibbling on her ear lobe.

“Carm…” Laura chewed her lip, what the hell are they meant to do now? What was this? What did it mean? She’d asked Carmilla if they were on the same page about this but… what page was it?

“Laura,” Carmilla said simply in reply, continuing her ministrations.

“Carm!” Laura laughed as she began to tickle her waist.

*

 Carmilla grumbled at the sound of the alarm and rolled away.

Laura awoke, feeling unusually _not_ tired, considering the amount of sleep she’d had, which was very little, she sat up and slipped from the bed.

Okay… so that had happened, that wondrous, amazing thing... but what did it mean? She considered this as she got ready for work, occasionally slipping back into the dark bedroom just to make sure that Carmilla was still there and that everything had really happened last night. She whispered she’d be back later and Carmilla smiled in her sleep.

And when Laura returned from work, Carmilla was still there. She walked out of the bedroom, sleepy but dressed and Laura emerged from the kitchen to face her, holding a cup of coffee, she had a plan.

“Carm,” Laura sighed in a defeated tone, running a hand through her hair.

“Laura?” Carmilla looked a little concerned, taking the mug that Laura offered. Both of them now looked slightly on edge, no longer trapped in the bubble of last night.

“Let’s sit,” Laura said after a moment of silence and Carmilla nodded, they found themselves sitting next to each other on the couch, not looking at or touching each other.

“Okay so… I don’t know about you but I _can’t_ pretend like… it wasn’t um… I can’t pretend like last night didn’t happen.” Laura said, blushing.

“Neither could I,” Carmilla frowned, looking at her now.

“Good because… this… whatever this is… just keeps happening.” 

Carmilla took a sip of her coffee and didn’t respond so Laura pressed on.

“And well… you’re an adult and I’m an adult, we seem to be enjoying each other, I think?” Laura glanced at Carmilla for confirmation.

“Oh, there’s definite enjoyment,” Carmilla said with a smile, her hand landing on Laura’s knee.

“So, I’m thinking,” Laura continued, turning to face her, “We could just… _continue_ that… enjoyment.”

They stared at each other and Carmilla leaned a little closer.

“Until this all plays out with your mother and it’s all over. It’s not like we’ll be seeing other people anyway. Let’s just…” She ran a hand down Carmilla’s leg.

“And when it’s over…” Carmilla whispered, staring at her. 

“It’s over,” Laura said with a confident nod, even though confident was one thing she was not feeling right now.

They gazed at each other.

“So… if we wanted to have a little fun right now…” Carmilla smirked, placing down her mug.

“We could definitely do that,” Laura said, straddling Carmilla’s lap and leaning down for a kiss. 

“As long as we don’t make a big deal out of it, it is what it is,” Laura said, straightening up.

“Not a big deal,” Carmilla confirmed, leaning towards Laura’s lips again.

 “Good, so it doesn’t-”

“Shhh,” Carmilla said, before capturing Laura’s lips with her own. 

*

 Alone in the booth, Laura checked the time on her phone, frowning as she started to scratch at the label on her beer bottle as she waited for her friends to join her. She recalled sitting alone in the booth like this a few months ago worrying about what the future held. She thought of Carmilla now… How could everything feel so right but so wrong at the same time?

 “Hey, Cutie,” Carmilla dropped down into the booth beside her, leaning over to kiss her cheek. Laura couldn’t help but smile, feeling her heart rate pick up at Carmilla’s mere presence.

“Hi Carm,” Laura smiled, leaning both her elbows on the table and staring down at the surface. She was overwhelmed, she just needed a moment or two, she couldn’t look at her right now.

“What’s wrong?” Carmilla frowned, placing an arm around her shoulder.

She looked up, glancing sideways at Carmilla quickly, “No, I- I-m just tired I guess.”

Carmilla gave her shoulder a squeeze, “I have something that might wake you up…”

“Okay?” Laura said, quietly, sitting back in the booth.

“My mother came to see me today,” Carmilla began.

“About the deal?” She asked, meeting her eyes. 

“No, that’s all moving along nicely, _this_ … was something else,” Carmilla smiled.

 Great, it’s going to be another party or dinner or she wouldn’t be surprised if it was an engagement party for them both.

“This,” Carmilla said, she pulled a folded piece of paper from an inside pocket of her leather jacket. It looked as though it had been ripped from a magazine. She unraveled it on the wooden table top and slid it to Laura.

Laura blushed immediately at what she saw, swallowing, she said, “We’re news…”

“That we are,” Carmilla smiled, licking her lower lip.

Most of the page was filled with numerous fuzzy images of Laura and Carmilla kissing outside of the restaurant from a few nights ago.

The head line read, _Carmilla’s Latest Conquest_

The article itself was predominantly about Lilita Karnstein and her possible retirement and business dealings but there was a segment that made Laura shake her head and smile, and she was surprised to read her name actually mentioned. 

_Carmilla was seen locking lips with, Silas News One early morning news anchor, Laura Hollis, outside of Sangiovese last Saturday night after dinner with her mother Lilita and some business executives furthering the rumors of her upcoming retirement. A close friend of the ladies said, “They are super happy and are making plans to move in together…”_

 “A close friend? What close friend?” Laura laughed.

“It’s all drivel written to spark rumor,” Carmilla said, shaking her head, “Mother was very amused by it all though. You should have seen her, very excited.”

“I know that,” Laura said, staring down at the images of them kissing, “I just didn’t expect us to be the subject of such rumors.”

“You get used to it,” Carmilla said, raising her eyebrows.

“You did tell her we aren’t moving in together, right?” Laura asked, meeting Carmilla’s gaze. 

“I did but you know what’s she’s like, that woman believes everything she reads,” Carmilla said, folding the paper up and putting it away. “I’m getting a drink; do you want anything?” 

*

 Laura was washing her hands when Carmilla entered the bathroom and strolled right over to the her, leaning on the countertop and crossing her arms. “So… should I… walk you home later?”

“If that means what I think it means, I have work,” Laura said, taking paper towels and just catching Carmilla’s little pout as she turned around.

“Never stopped you before,” Carmilla said, catching her by the waist.

Laura smiled, leaning her forehead on Carmilla’s collarbone, “Yes but I’d like to be coherent when I read the news for once.”

Carmilla placed a kiss on her brow and then down the side of her face to her lips. Laura leaned into the kiss, her hands slipping into Carmilla’s hair.

“I guess you could… come up for a little while,” Laura whispered against her lips.

 Carmilla smiled, squeezing Laura’s waist, “Hmmm… what about tomorrow?”

They kissed again, “Come by in the afternoon?”

“Sure,” Carmilla nodded, her nose tickling Laura’s jaw.

“Let’s get out of here, anyone could walk in,” Laura said, grabbing Carmilla’s hand and pulling her toward the exit.

*

 Laura yawned, pulling her blanket more tightly around herself as she stared at the tv. A knock sounded at the door, she stared in that direction, hoping it was just Carmilla.

“Hi, Carm. Good, it’s just you, I didn’t want to have to get up. Where have you been?” Laura said when Carmilla appeared, smiling at her for a moment before her eyes returned to the tv.

“Hi Cutie,” Carmilla smiled, removing her jacket and shoes, relaxing onto the couch next to her. “I didn’t realize I had an ETA, what time were you expecting me?” She placed a hand on Laura’s blanket covered thigh.

Laura shrugged, looking at her a little pouty, “Well, a little sooner, I missed you.”

“I’m here now, I’m all yours.” Carmilla said, squeezing her thigh, “What are you watching?”

“Um… some documentary about the pyramids,” Laura mumbled, yawning again.

“I see,” Carmilla stroked soothingly up and down her leg.

“It’s pretty good, they said something about aliens… I’m not sure, I missed the start,” Laura said, lifting the blanket onto Carmilla’s lap too.

“Sounds riveting,” Carmilla said, with an edge of sarcasm. 

Laura smiled, rolling her eyes, moving closer, leaning against her shoulder and closing her eyes.

“It’s very interesting,” Laura said quietly. 

“Said the Cutie falling asleep,” Carmilla murmured, dropping a kiss to her brow. 

*

 Laura was comforted by the rise and fall of Carmilla’s chest as she woke up, they lay nestled together on the couch. She was so warm and relaxed and Carmilla looked so peaceful as she slept beneath her. Laura nuzzled closer into her neck, sighing in absolute contentment.

After several minutes, Carmilla’s even breathing faltered and her hands moved slowly up and down Laura’s back. “What time is it?”

“Um…” Laura stretched her arm towards the table beside the couch, just reaching her phone. “Almost 5.30.”

Carmilla stretched underneath her and relaxed again, pulling the blanket back up around them.

“Do you want food? I’m pretty hungry, I haven’t eaten much today,” Laura said, resting her chin on Carmilla’s chest to look up at her.

“Sure,” Carmilla smiled, her eyes falling shut again. 

An hour and a half later, Carmilla and Laura sat close around the dining table, the pizza they had ordered long gone.

“… I mean, I can’t say my dad was particularly happy at first but it was what I needed and what I wanted too, so I moved here and I’ve been here for almost 5 years now. Actually, it’ll be five years in May.” Laura said, taking a sip of her beer. “What about you?”

“As you can probably guess, I’ve lived here my whole life, not a lot to say,” Carmilla shrugged.

“I’m not sure what I’ll do when Perry inevitably just moves into LaF’s for good, I can’t afford this place without a roommate, she knows that and I think that’s why she hasn’t moved out yet,” Laura said, looking around the apartment fondly.

“What will you do?” Carmilla frowned.

Laura shrugged, “Find another roommate, find somewhere else to live, I’m not sure but I’ll never find somewhere as good as this place.”

“Well I, as you well know, have money so if you need-”

“Carm, don’t even go there- Besides, that’s a problem for _future_ Laura to figure out. I’ve got enough things to worry about as is.” Laura said, standing and moving over the couch. 

Carmilla followed, “And what does _present_ Laura worry about?” she asked, placing her beer down.

“Wow, okay… Work, you, my dad-”

“Me?” Carmilla interrupted. 

Laura nodded. Should she not have mentioned her? If there was one thing on her mind, one thing she worried about most, it was Carmilla.

“What about me?” Carmilla asked intently.

“Everything with your mother and the business and our... situation,” Laura stared at her. 

“Cupcake, you don’t have to worry about anything when it comes to me,” she pushed a strand of Laura’s hair behind her ear.

Why is this suddenly so tense and serious, Laura thought, frowning. She’d have to say something to diffuse the tension.

“And also, you’ve completely ruined me for other women...” Laura laughed, feeling her face redden at her own joke.

Carmilla chuckled, placing a finger under Laura’s chin and leaning in to kiss her.

“Especially finding one you haven’t already slept with,” Laura added before their lips met.

“ _Hey_ ,” Carmilla smiled, bringing her hand to Laura’s cheek and kissing her.

Carmilla made a pleasant hmm sound, leaning closer and Laura brought a hand up into her hair.

“Hi,” Came Perry’s voice and Laura just caught Perry disappearing into her bedroom as they separated.

They looked at each other in confusion. Had she not noticed them?

“Perry?” Laura yelled, a little breathless.

“I forget she actually lives here,” Carmilla mumbled, backing away a little.

“You coming down to the bar?” Perry yelled from her bedroom, “LaF’s already down there.”

“Sure,” Laura said, frowning at Carmilla.

“Oh, hello, Carmilla, how are you doing?” Perry said as she left the bedroom wearing a new shirt.

“Hey, I'm... pretty good actually,” Carmilla responded with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m going to meet LaF, you guys ready now?” Perry asked. 

“Sure, we’ll just be a few minutes,” Carmilla said, nodding at Perry.

They stared after Perry as she disappeared behind the apartment door, they were silent for a moment.

“We’re going to your place next time,” Laura said, moving to stand.

Carmilla chuckled, standing and placing a kiss on Laura’s cheek, “That’s fine by me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This shit has gone from a fake relationship au to a friends with benefits au in the space of chapter. I'm not even following my planned storyline anymore, I'm just writing whatever the fuck I want.


	11. And all we have we lose...

Laura sighed contently as she started to wake, turning over with a small smile, she gazed at Carmilla as she appeared to sleep on. She was beautiful and so serene, god, Laura wanted to plant kisses all over her face. Laura groaned as she stretched out her tired limbs and one of Carmilla’s eyes sneaked open.

“Carm, your bed is so comfortable… how can I _ever_ go back to mine?” She murmured, pulling the sheets up higher around them and practically climbing Carmilla before snuggling into her neck.

“No, Cupcake,” Carmilla said, her voice husky with sleep, “I prefer yours… although you are usually in it.” Carmilla’s hands came up to wrap around her, absentmindedly stroking her back.

It occurred to Laura that this was the first time they had woken up together since this little agreement of theirs had begun, usually Laura would have to leave super early for work so this was very different.

“Do you have anything you need to do today?” Laura whispered into Carmilla’s ear before she placed some lazy kisses down her neck.

Carmilla sighed, “Yep,” Laura paused in her ministrations, she couldn’t help but feel just a little disappointed.

“I need to stay here in bed with you… all day,” Carmilla said, turning her head to side to kiss Laura’s cheek and then down to her lips as Laura laughed silently, rolling her eyes.

Laura lifted herself so she could kiss Carmilla properly, straddling her hips. “Hmm, like the sound of that,” she whispered against her mouth.

 Carmilla ‘s hands tangled in her hair as they kissed. Laura gave up holding herself up and relaxed fully against her and Carmilla’s hands traveled down her back to rest on her hips. She never wanted to stop kissing her, everything was right when she was kissing Carmilla.

“What’s that?” Carmilla asked almost inaudibly, pulling away.

“What’s what?” Laura asked, frowning at Camilla for stopping the kissing.

“That sound,” Laura paused, listening, only hearing the sounds of her heavy breathing for a few seconds.

Someone’s phone was vibrating. 

“That’s your phone.” Carmilla said, squeezing her hips.

“Ignore it,” Laura said, leaning down and kissing her again.

Carmilla separated them again after a moment, “They’re calling back, just answer it, we have all day,” she said, dropping her hands.

Laura grumbled quietly, climbing off of Carmilla and reaching down to the floor for her jeans, finding her phone in the pocket. “It’s Perry,” she said before answering.

“Hi Per,” Laura spoke into the phone, relaxing back against the pillows.

“Good morning, Laura. Where are you?” Perry asked, it sounded like she might be vacuuming or something.

“Where am I? I’m…” She looked to Carmilla with a nervous frown.

Carmilla whispered, “Work,” as she kissed her shoulder.

“Work! I’m at work,” Laura smiled, shaking her head.

“You don’t _usually_ work on Fridays,” Perry responded. 

“No but… I had a meeting,” Laura pushed Carmillas shoulder lightly as she sucked on her collarbone.

“Well don’t forget we’re all going to Danny’s for game night tonight.”

“What? _”_ Laura sat up suddenly and Carmilla groaned, falling onto her back.

“Game night at Danny’s.”

“What? _Why?_ ” Laura said, pouting. 

“Because today is the day we decided on, Laura. How could you not know, we talked about it extensively yesterday at the bar.”

 Laura tried to think back, yesterday at the bar… Carmilla had started stroking her thigh and Laura hadn’t managed to follow much of the conversation after that. She’d just been scheming ways to get Carmilla out of there as soon as possible.

“I completely forgot?” Laura asked, running a hand through her hair. 

“Me and LaF are getting there for seven thirty,” Perry said, sounding a little peeved.

“Okay,” Laura said, rubbing her eyes. Carmilla’s arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her back down into her arms.

“Do I have to go? I’m not going,” Carmilla whispered.

“You’re going,” Laura responded without thinking, stroking a hand through Carmilla’s hair.

“Who are you talking to?” Perry asked.

“Carm... _Carmen from work_ … is here, my friend Carmen from work,” Laura ran a hand over her face as she blushed, what the hell was wrong with her. That was past the point of believable. 

Carmilla hid her face in the pillows as she laughed.

“Okay,” Perry said, sounding confused, “Laura, I’ll see you later, okay?”

Laura covered her face with her hand, “See ya, Per.”

She hung up the phone, “ _Oh god, she knew!_ ”

“Well, whose fault is that?” Carmilla smirked, pulling her close and kissing her cheek. “Who cares anyway?”

“We can’t tell the others, Carm. They wouldn’t understand… they would just all freak out and be all judgey about this and I really don’t want to have to deal with all that,” Laura said, sighing and turning to meet Carmilla’s lips.

“Fine by me…” Carmilla murmured, “Do you want breakfast?”

Laura nodded, running a finger up and down Carmilla’s arm, “Yes but we could stay here for… a little longer?”

“You read my mind,” Carmilla smiled and pulled her in for a kiss, humming pleasantly. 

*

 “This is all very nice,” Laura said, emerging from the bedroom, her hair still damp from her shower, she sat at the kitchen isle, to be greeted by croissants, fruit and pancakes.

“Carm, is someone joining us for breakfast? Who is going to eat all of this?” Laura smiled, helping herself to pancakes.

“Well, I didn’t know what you’d want this morning so I just went out and got a few different things,” Carmilla shrugged.

“You left the apartment? Carm, you didn’t have to do that, I would have been happy with cereal.” Laura said, standing and moving around the counter to plant a kiss on Carmilla’s cheek as she made coffee.

“Thank you,” Laura whispered.

Carmilla glanced at her looking a little unsure, she nodded and cleared her throat, “Well… don’t expect this every time you stay over,” she said, turning back to the coffee.

They were quiet for a moment before Carmilla joined her, placing their mugs down, “I’d suggest eating breakfast out on the balcony but it’s a little cold,” she said, sitting next to her.

“Maybe when it gets a little warmer, that might be nice,” Laura shrugged and then frowned down at her plate, thinking about how she’d just suggested this little arrangement was still going to be a thing in a couple months’ time.

“Sure,” Carmilla smiled, helping herself to a piece of melon.

 Laura glanced at Carmilla and then back down at her plate, this was weird, wasn’t it?  Or maybe it wasn’t weird at all and the complete absence of weird is what was making this weird.

They ate in silence for a moment before Carmillas phone vibrated next to her plate.

“Hello Mother,” she said, she frowned as she listened to her mother speak.

“That depends on what exactly you want from me,” Carmilla said, sipping her coffee.

Carmilla sighed, Laura stared at her intrigued.

“Yep… no, I’ll do it… Mom, I said I would do it,” Carmilla looked at Laura, rolling her eyes.

Laura laughed silently and Carmilla leaned over and placed a kiss to the side of her brow.

“Okay, I will… see you soon,” Carmilla ended the call, and picked up a croissant.

“What was that about?” Laura asked.

“I have to attend a meeting in my mother’s place, she said she’s busy but she just doesn’t want to go. She says hi by the way,” Carmilla smiled.

“A meeting?” Laura asked, picking at her pancake.

“A charity thing, I'm not sure... somebody from the company just has to show their face,” Carmilla sighed, sipping her drink. 

“Will I see you later?” Laura asked quietly, meeting Carmilla’s gaze.

“Do you mean later or _later_?” Carmilla smirked, leaning closer.

Laura chewed her lip, smiling as she stared at her, “Both? I’m not working tomorrow.”

“Hmm… I think I can make time for you,” Carmilla smirked, leaning dangerously close.

Laura leaned closer, their noses almost touching.

“Don’t forget we’re going to Danny’s later,” Laura whispered. 

Carmilla grimaced a little at the mention of Danny’s name and she moved away.

Laura smiled, “She’s not so bad. She’s one of our friends.” 

“Do you-” Carmilla began, starting to rip her croissant to bits. 

“Do I what…?” Laura asked with interest, placing her fork down.

 “Are you interested in her?”

“Who Danny?” Laura giggled, “No, why?”

“I just- I get the feeling she’s interested in you. You saw how this whole fake dating thing shook her up and she quite obviously doesn’t like me,” Carmilla said, frowning at her plate.

“Me and Danny tried the dating thing in college and it just never worked out, you know all this, Carm. Me and Danny, all that’s over…” Laura said, reaching out and rubbing her fingers over Carmilla’s wrist.

“Not that you- I mean, if you wanted to, you can date whoever you want of course.” Carmilla said, standing suddenly and moving to the sink.

“Carm, I’m not interested in Danny, what’s gotten into you?” Laura said, frowning.

“I’m sorry it’s not… I’m just a little pissed. I’d rather spend the evening with you than playing checkers at Xena’s. Do you want a ride home?” Carmilla said, turning to face her.

“Carm…” Laura smiled as she approached her, placing her hands on Carmilla’s hips and pulling her closer. “Play nice at Danny’s and I’ll make it worth your while,” Laura whispered into her ear before she began placing kisses down her neck.

Carmilla sucked in a breath, a hand finding Laura’s hip pulling them flush together, her other snaking into Laura’s hair. “Well, when you put it that way…” she said, pulling Laura in for a kiss, “I suddenly can’t wait for game night.” 

*

 “So, is Carmilla coming to game night or not?” Kirsch said, glancing down at his watch as he took a seat next to Laura on the couch in Danny’s apartment.

Laura sighed, “She better be,” sipping her beer and frowning at the floor.

“What does that mean?” LaF asked, giving her an odd look from their position on the floor on the opposite side of the table.

 “Nothing, she just said she would come is all,” Laura said, shaking her head and pulling at the sleeves on her sweater. 

“Well let’s just get started without her,” Danny said, grabbing monopoly from the top of the pile of board games.

When Laura was bankrupt and out of the game, she pulled her phone out and was about to type an angry text to Carmilla for not showing up when a knock sounded on the apartment door.

“I’ll get it,” Laura said, quickly, jumping up from the couch and heading around the corner for the door.

Laura tried her best not to smile when she opened the door and Carmilla was waiting on the other side, leather pants and all.

“Carmilla, where have you been? You’re very late,” Laura whispered with a frown, holding the door half closed so Carmilla couldn’t actually get in.

“I said would come, I didn’t say I would be on time,” Carmilla said, leaning against the door frame and into Laura’s personal space with a smirk.

Laura continued to frown and Carmilla leaned closer.

“No,” Laura said, looking back over her shoulder warily, “Not here.”

Carmilla gave a little pout and Laura pulled her lower lip between her teeth as they gazed at each other.

“Okay, just one kiss,” Laura said, stepping out into the hall and pulling the door over. 

Carmilla’s hands came up to cup Laura’s face and pull her close, she stroked her thumb along her cheekbone for a moment before they kissed.

Laura groaned into the kiss, stepping closer as their tongues met, keeping one hand on the door frame, the other landing on Carmilla’s waist.

They kissed for a few moments longer, Laura pulled away taking a few gasping breaths, “Come on before they start wondering where we are,” she said, taking Carmilla’s hand.

“How about we just get out of here and have our own game night?” Carmilla said, pulling Laura closer again.

 “No, Carm, remember what I said? Play nice,” Laura smiled.

“Cupcake I couldn’t forget,” Carmilla groaned. 

“Good, come on,” Laura said, tugging her hand and pulling her into the apartment. When Laura turned to push the apartment door closed behind them, Carmilla leaned into her neck making a yearning sound.

“Carm,” Laura whispered, giggling. “Later.”

She dropped Carmilla’s hand once they moved around the corner into the living room, everybody looked in their direction.

“Carm, you’re here, hey,” LaF said, pushing their messy hair away from their brow before they rolled the dice.

Carmilla greeted everyone and took a seat next to Laura, giving her knee a squeeze, Laura wasn’t sure that she had even realized she had done it.

“How are you, Carmilla?” Perry asked, handing out monopoly cash, she appeared to be bankrupt also.

“Never better,” Carmilla said as she removed her jacket.

“You missed monopoly,” Laura said quietly to her.

“Good, as long as I didn’t miss strip poker,” Carmilla whispered back with a wink in her direction.

“Eww you wanna play strip poker with your friends?” Laura smirked.

Carmilla looked over at Danny and grimaced, suddenly realizing what she’d said, “Fair point. I’m gonna get a beer, do you want anything?” 

“Yep, I’ll have another,” Laura responded as LaF began to cheer at their win.

And so, game night continued, Perry won trivial pursuit, Danny won clue, Laura and Carmilla were best at charades, or Carmilla was the best at guessing what Laura was acting out.

Laura wandered into the kitchen, poking her head into the fridge, drawing in a quick breath when Carmilla stood directly behind her, almost dropping the bottles she’d just pulled out..

“Hey Cutie,” Carmilla smirked.

“You scared me,” Laura huffed, placing the bottles on the side as Carmilla’s hands came up to her waist. “Wait, we don’t want to miss our turn, they will literally miss us out if we’re not there.”

“I don’t care,” Carmilla smiled, pulling Laura closer.

“We’re in Danny’s kitchen,” Laura whispered. 

Carmilla just smiled at her, the tongue swiping at her lower lip.

Laura leaned in, their lips meeting in a slow kiss.

“So, what’s the plan for tonight, I believe you said something about making it worth my while,” Carmilla smiled, pushing a strand of Laura’s hair behind her ear. 

“Really? I’m not sure you deserve it just yet,” Laura teased. 

Carmilla closed her eyes, her hands squeezing Laura’s waist, “What would- ”

“Laura, can you bring in a beer for me as well?” Danny called from other room.

They quickly separated as the reality of where they were seemed to settle back in, “Yeah, you got it,” Laura said, clearing her throat. 

“We’re about to start twister,” Danny called again.

“Oh joy,” Carmilla said, rolling her eyes. 

*

“Thanks for game night Danny, we really should do this more often, it was a lotta fun. I’ll host the next one!” Laura exclaimed, excitedly as she pulled on her coat.

Danny smiled, “I’ll look forward to it, see ya Laura,” she pulled Laura in for a hug.

“Laura, are you coming back with us, we might as well all go to yours and Perry’s,” LaF said as they headed towards the door.

Laura made eye contact with Carmilla momentarily, “Oh right, um… yeah sure, that’ll work.”

She gave Carmilla a sorry look and she gave a small shrug, it wasn’t like Laura could really say no, they were going back to her apartment, it would be odd for her to not head home with them.

Laura lingered back with Carmilla as they followed Perry and LaF out, “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, Carm,” she said, looking at her longingly as they left the building. Looks like she wouldn’t be going to Carmilla’s after all.

“See ya tomorrow cutie,” Carmilla smiled after her as she left with LaF and Perry. 

* 

11.56 Carm: Let me in

Laura glanced down at her phone on the bedside table as she pulled on her pajama shirt.

11.57 Carm: I’m waiting Cupcake…

Laura frowned at her phone and then snuck out of her bedroom quietly, Perry’s bedroom door was closed and she assumed they would not make another appearance tonight. Laura quietly opened the apartment door to Carmilla waiting on the other side, she watched as pocketed her phone.

“Oh good, I thought you might be asleep already,” she smiled, a perfect smile.

“Carm, what the hell are you doing here?” Laura whisper yelled, “Perry and LaF are here tonight.”

“I know but how could I not after that sulky cute face you made after you found out,” Carmilla smiled.

“ _Shh_!” Laura said, glancing behind her but couldn’t stop herself from smiling, “Get in here quick!”

She grabbed Carmilla’s hand, pulling her into apartment, locked the door quickly and rushed back into her bedroom.

“We can’t be… you know… loud,” Laura blushed, wringing the fingers together. 

Carmilla smirked, bringing her hands up to Laura’s hips, her fingers dipping underneath her tank top.

“Carm, _you’re cold!_ ” Laura jumped away.

“I need you to warm me up, Cutie,” Carmilla said, taking off her jacket.

Laura lay back on her bed, running a hand through her hair as she worried about the possibility of getting found out, as Carmilla sat on the edge of the bed and removed her shoes and then dragged off her leather pants as well.

Laura swallowed as she watched Carmilla prowl towards her and straddle her hips, still not quite in the mood for this right now.

When Carmilla dipped closer as if to kiss her, Laura put a finger to Carmilla’s lips, “We have to be quiet,” she said again.

Carmilla smiled in acknowledgment, her tongue poking out and licking at Laura’s finger making her roll her eyes and giggle at the same time.

Hmm… Carmilla groaned as she leaned down to kiss her, slipping her hands under Laura’s shirt, her cold hands slipping up her abdomen to her breasts. 

“ _Christ_ , really Carm, your hands are-”

“ _Shh_ ,” Carmilla interrupted, kissing her again and grinding her hips against hers, and she forgot what she was complaining about after that. 

She pulled Laura’s shirt off followed by her own, laying kisses along her collarbones and then back up to her lips, rocking her hips again.

Laura’s hands got lost in Carmilla’s hair as they kissed, Carmilla wasted no time, her hand dipped into her pajama shorts and Laura gasped, sucking in a deep breath as she broke away from the kiss.

Laura lifted her hips as Carmilla removed her shorts, her fingers slipping back between Laura’s legs as she sucked down her throat. 

“Carm,” Laura moaned and Carmilla brought their lips together again with a _shh._  

Laura hid her face in Carmilla’s neck as two fingers entered her, moaning against her throat. Carmilla chuckled, “For as adamant as you were about keeping quiet, you are really struggling to do so,” Carmilla whispered.

“Just you wait, Karnstein,” Laura groaned, shifting her hips against Carmilla’s hand.

Carmilla chuckled again, picking up the pace and rubbing a little harsher at Laura’s clit, making her hide her face against Carmilla’s throat again.

Laura gripped at Carmilla’s back and bit down on her neck to try and mask any sounds as the sensations became too much.

Laura sucked in some ragged breathes, “Was I loud?”

Carmilla smiled, “Not loud… quieter than you usually are.”

“Hey, I am not that loud during sex,” Laura could feel herself blushing.

“Cupcake, are you serious?” Carmilla said, leaning down to suck kisses along Laura’s jaw.

“Carm, if one of us is loud, it’s you,” Laura said, moving her head to side to allow Carmilla to continue her ministrations.

Carmilla chuckled, “You are without a doubt louder than me.”

Laura pushed Carmilla onto her back quickly, straddling her waist, “You better not make a single sound Carm,” Laura warned, “Or else I’ll stop.” 

*

 Laura hummed to herself as she made cocoa, chewing on a cookie from one of the 50 boxes that were still in her kitchen from Carmilla. She glanced up at the clock on the wall, Carmilla would be here soon. 

As she watched tv and drank her cocoa, a knock sounded on the apartment door and Carmilla let herself in as usual.

“Hey Carm,” Laura stood with a smile, wrapping her arms around her waist and hugging her close.

“Are you okay? How was work?” Carmilla asked, looking down at her a little concerned with the unexpected hugging.

“I’m great actually,” Laura smiled, “My boss pulled me aside this morning and said how well I’ve been doing lately and she also said one of mid-afternoon anchors just quit so I’m thinking, maybe I got a shot at it.” Laura beamed.

“Laura, that’s great news,” Carmilla smiled, cupping her face in her hands and kissing her quickly. 

“Well, I haven’t got the job yet but with any luck,” Laura nodded confidently, rising up on her tippy toes to kiss Carmilla soundly.

“Come on,” Laura said, grabbing Carmilla’s hand and leading her into the bedroom.

Carmilla removed her jacket, allowing it fall to the floor as Laura kissed her. Laura pulled off her shirt as Carmilla pulled off her boots quickly.

 She straddled Carmilla’s lap as she sat on the edge of the bed, her hands knotting themselves in her hair as Carmilla sucked kisses down her throat.

“Laura, are you here?” They both froze as the apartment door closed.

“Laura?” Perry called.

“ _Shit, shit, shit_ ,” Laura whispered as she quickly pulled her shirt back on. “Stay in here,” Laura whispered to Carmilla who just smiled, kissing her quickly once more before leaving her bedroom.

“There you are,” Perry said, placing down her bag, “I’m staying here tonight, LaF has to be up before dawn for some work thing and I just can’t stand the noise they make, so we’re spending the night apart,” she said with a sigh. 

“Oh,” Laura said, unable to hide her disappointment.

“Everything okay, Laura?” Perry asked, giving her a concerned look, “You know, I sometimes forget you must be quite lonely here on your own sometimes, I’m sorry, I know we’re meant to be roommates but… I’m here now!”

“Perry, it’s not- I’m not– I’m fine, everything is good here,” Laura blushed.

“So, what do ya wanna do? I know it’s late, are you heading to bed? We could watch a movie or something?” Perry said, sitting on the couch.

“l… I-” Laura couldn’t even think of what to say.

“Or you know, we could just talk, we never talk just you and me anymore and I’ve been meaning to talk to you about… _you know_ … Carmilla?”

_Oh god_

“Carm?” Laura frowned, running a hand through her hair, nervously, her gaze wandering over to her half open bedroom door as she took a seat next to Perry.

“What’s happening, Laura? I’d have thought you two would have… worked things out by now? To be honest, Laura, I kind of thought you and Carmilla were already together, the way you are with each other...” Perry said, looking at Laura with interest.

“I- Huh?” Laura gave Perry a confused glance, feeling her face turning red as Perry had unknowingly chosen the worst time to have this conversation.

“Have you really not spoken to Carmilla about any of this?” Perry asked with a small smile.

Laura nodded, clearing her throat, “Yes, of course I’ve spoken to her.”

“Annnd?” Perry nodded, wanting to know more.

 “We’re not… It’s not like that, why?” Laura asked, her gaze wandering back to her dark bedroom beyond the door.

 “You’ve not – I thought once you two had figured things out you’d you know… be together?” Perry said with an uncertain frown.

 “Be tog-” Laura almost choked, oh god, Carmilla could undoubtedly hear all of this, “ _No, no no_ , me and Carm no… Laura spluttered, “We are not a- no that’s not going to happen-”

“Laura, are you sure you’ve actually-” Perry began.

 “Perry, me and Carmilla are friends, _nothing more_ ,” Laura said with a confident nod, pulling at the hair on the back of the head. “Now I have work in the morning so I better… head to bed,” she said, standing quickly.

 “Okay, well good night, Laura, I hope I haven’t overstepped, I just want what’s best for you,” Perry said, standing also.

 “Perry, wasn’t it _you and LaF_ who told me _not_ to get involved with Carmilla in the first place? Wasn’t it you and LaF who told me all of _this_ was a bad idea?” Laura said, feeling a little angry now.

 “ _But that was before_ , Laura! Before we knew…” Perry stopped herself, taking a deep breath.

 “Before what?” Laura asked, shaking a little.

 “You’ve been _so happy_ recently Laura… don’t you think at least a part of that is because of Carmilla?”

 Laura sighed, her gaze hitting the floor. She knew, of course that yes Carmilla probably was the reason for that happiness but she also knew that that happiness was likely to be coming to an end soon. And she knew it would kill her when it did but she just couldn’t stop herself… Laura felt a sting of tears in her eyes.

“Carmilla doesn’t- She doesn’t-” She paused, still very aware of Carmilla listening to every word from the other room. “It’s not… It’s not going to happen.”

“Goodnight Perry,” Laura wiped her eyes with her hand quickly before turning back for her bedroom, hearing Perry’s bedroom door close as hers did.

“Carm…” Laura whispered into the darkness of the room as her eyes adjusted, Carmilla was pulling on her shoes.

“Carm…” Laura said again.

“I gotta go,” Carmilla said, swiping up her jacket from the floor.

“Why?” Laura frowned, moving toward her but Carmilla took a step back. 

“Susie homemaker is here,” she said not meeting her gaze.

“So…” Laura shrugged, that didn't seem to matter before.

“Bye, Laura,” Carmilla said, moving past her and keeping her distance.

She left the bedroom, moving quickly across the room towards the apartment door.

“ _Carm_ …” Laura whispered from her bedroom doorway.

She didn’t respond, turning to glance at Laura for a second before slamming the door behind her.

Laura took a step towards the door, pausing when Perry appeared at her bedroom door, “What was that?!”

 “… Nothing,” Laura responded after a moment, heading back into her bedroom.


	12. When it comes to love I’m just another fool

Laura blew out a breath and wiped the tears from her eyes as she washed up her mug in the kitchen, almost laughing at how ridiculous she felt, _what was wrong with her? Girl the hell up, Hollis!_   _This is getting out of hand._

It had been three days since she'd seen Carmilla and Laura could still hear the slamming of the door. She hadn’t appeared at the bar the past few nights, she hadn’t answered any of her calls or texts and Laura had left some very embarrassing voicemails which she now regretted and wished she could do over. 

_Hi Carm, it’s me… again, Laura… though you probably already know that. I’m still not sure what happened?… Was it something I said to Perry? Was it something that Perry said? I didn’t know any of that was going to happen, I mean, of course I didn’t, but you know Perry she’s… Carm, will you just let me know if you’re okay?_

Would it be wrong to just show up at Carmilla's apartment? Laura shook herself, glancing up at the clock on her kitchen wall, she’d better meet the guys down at the bar... she chewed her lip as considered the possibility that Carmilla might show tonight. 

*

“Carmilla? Did you not know? She’s out of town for something, said something about her mother,” LaF said with a shrug, “Did she not tell you? I thought you’d have known, L.”

“No...” Laura took a sip of her beer, clearing her throat, “I didn’t know, she- she didn’t mention anything to me.” She began to pick at the label on her bottle. So Carmilla was out of town… okay... but that still didn’t explain her strange behavior.

“Laura, are you okay? Did something happen?” LaF asked with a concerned frown.

Laura shrugged, “Its um... nothing, just work, possible promotion opportunity, I’m just worrying about it is all.” That wasn’t exactly a lie, that was also on her mind.

“Oh, but Laura that’s _fantastic_ ,” Perry smiled across the booth at her, “I’m sure you’ll do well. What position is it?”

“Thanks, Per, so it would-” Laura began.

“Look who it is,” LaF interrupted, nodding towards the entrance with a grin.

Laura’s eyes shot up, sucking in a deep breath, her eyes searching the bar for Carmilla, “Where is she?” Laura asked aloud, her eyes still wandering manically.

“Look it’s your tattooed friend,” LaF said, pointing to the bar.

Laura felt her heart sink as she realized it wasn’t Carmilla at all.

Mackenzie, her biggest fan, was taking a seat at the bar. Laura looked down at her bottle again, feeling let down, for a moment there she'd actually believed Carmilla was back. She needed to see her, to talk to Carmilla, this was driving her mad.

“So, you weren’t interested then?” LaF asked and Laura looked up when she realized they were talking to her.

“Your friend over there, you weren’t interested then?” LaF asked again, nodding their head in Mackenzie’s direction. 

She shrugged, “I um… lost her number. I think I’m just gonna head home actually,” she said, standing quickly.

“Laura, what's wrong? Are you okay?” Perry asked, frowning.

“I’m fine guys, I’m just tired,” Laura said, pulling on her coat, struggling to even pretend she was okay. _Don't cry. Don't cry._

“We’ll see you tomorrow?” Perry asked.

“Of course,” Laura forced a smile in their direction as she slipped from the booth and headed for the exit.

“If it isn’t Laura Hollis,” Laura looked up when she heard her name.

“Oh, hi Mackenzie,” she smiled, giving her a small wave, not very enthusiastic but the most she could manage. 

“How are you? Everything okay?” Mackenzie asked with a warm smile.

 “Um... not too bad, how are you?” Laura pushed some hair behind her ear, she wasn’t really in the mood to have a conversation like this.

 “Not too bad either,” Mackenzie nodded, “Did um… Did the bartender ever give you my number? I left it here for you.”

Laura sucked in a breath, “Yes he did, I kinda lost it though. I left it in my pants and um… they kinda went through the wash and it got all mushed up,” Laura said, bouncing up on her tippy toes, nervously, glancing towards the exit.

“Well hang on, I’ll give it you now, give me your phone,” Mackenzie rolled up one of her falling sleeves as Laura searched her pockets for her phone.

 She added a new contact and handed the phone to Mackenzie.

“Here…” Mackenzie smiled, “Give us a call sometime, we could be… _friends?_ ”

“Sure,” Laura smiled with a nod, “That… that would be nice.”

She pocketed her phone and left the bar on autopilot, staring at the ground, she wondered what Carmilla was doing right now... Was she thinking about her? Out of the city on work... That was believable, right? Did she have any reason not to believe that? Why wouldn’t Carmilla tell her if she was going out of town?

*

 Laura spend the following two days worried about Carmilla, who was still a no show. She’d asked LaFontaine and they were certain she was still out of town but why was Carmilla ignoring her and not LaFontaine?

She thought maybe she’d start to feel better about everything after a few days but found that she just felt worse the more time went on. It didn’t help that everything reminded her of Carmilla in some way. It was worse when she was trying to sleep at night, she had somehow grown used to Carmilla lying beside her at night, she longed to reach out and pull her closer but that side of the bed was always cold and empty.

She watched the cereal move around the bowl, it had now been six days since Carmilla had disappeared on her. Carmilla used to eat this cereal in the mornings when Laura had just returned from work, sometimes they would eat it together. She dropped her spoon into the bowl when a knock sounded at the door, milk splashing up and hitting her face.

She stood quickly, wiping her face with her shirt as she opened the door.

 _“Carm!”_ Laura said when she opened her eyes, was this actually happening?

_God, I probably look like shit_

“Hey,” Carmilla gave a very short-lived smile, her hands shoved into the pockets of her leather jacket.

“Carm, where- Where have you been?! You haven’t called me back its been _six days_ and I’ve been worried about you. You leave like I’ve clearly done something wrong and then you ignore me and I embarrassed myself leaving stupid messages on your phone-”

“I was out of town for work, with my mother,” Carmilla said rather blankly.

“But why didn’t you tell me?” Laura frowned. "LaF had to tell me."

Carmilla shrugged, stepping over the threshold, her hands moving to the back pockets of her jeans.

“I came here to speak with you, I have some… news,” Carmilla said apprehensively.

“Okay,” Laura replied, feeling a horrible twisting, wrenching in her stomach, she turned away for a moment as she tried to compose herself and she heard the apartment door closing.

“The business is almost sold, the deal is… done,” Carmilla said, raking a hand through her hair.

“Oh…” Laura responded, staring at her, she didn’t know what to say.

 There was a moment of silence, Carmilla stared at the floor near Laura’s feet.

“My mother invited us both to her apartment, a celebration of sorts but I’m going to attend on my own… and tell her that we... broke up,” Carmilla spoke, her face expressionless. 

“Carm-”

 “Now that the company is sold… you don’t have too… I mean, this thing, this…” she gestured between them, “You don’t have to do this with me anymore,” she said meeting Laura’s eyes for only the second time since she had entered the apartment.

“So, what, that’s it? We just… go back to the way it was before?” Laura said, stumbling over her words.

Carmilla nodded calmly, “I’ll talk to my mom.”

Another moment of silence.

“Okay, you should… do that,” Laura swallowed, trying to hold back tears that threatened to spill over.

“And we’ll just... end this thing, right?” Carmilla said, coldly.

“Right,” Laura whispered, “If that’s… what you want,” turning away quickly and heading over to her bowl, she picked it up, desperate for something to occupy her mind other than this conversation.

"Well, we’re not really… this wasn’t meant to… last,” Carmilla said, she breathed heavily, staring at her now.

Laura felt like she was going to be sick.

“I guess not…” She responded, moving toward the kitchen, she couldn’t look at Carmilla anymore, she couldn’t do this. 

“Okay, I guess I'll just see you later, Laura.”

Laura didn’t respond, she didn’t turn back, she couldn’t, if she looked at Carmilla again she wouldn’t be able to hold back the tears. She heard the door closing and she paused, turning slowly. Carmilla was gone. She sucked in a shaky breath, placing her cereal bowl on the side and sinking to the ground in the middle of her kitchen. She hadn’t known what to expect upon Carmilla’s return but it certainly hadn’t been that. 

*

She stared at her glass of wine, which she had opted for tonight instead of beer, “That’s it? She told her mom its over?”

Laura nodded, “Yep. Well, she said she would, I don't know if she already has." 

“And that’s it?” Perry asked, "No more fake dating?"

“Yep,” Laura responded again.

“Laura, are you okay?”

Was she okay? No, she was definitely not okay but she couldn’t talk to LaF and Perry about any of what really went on between her and Carmilla because they didn’t know and if she told them now, they would be all judgey and freak out and then they would try to be all sympathetic and that would just make everything worse because Laura didn’t want that right now.

“Of course, I’m good, I’m always good,” she shrugged, sipping her wine and glancing around the bar, desperately trying to think of something else to talk about other than Carmilla. She almost choked when she spotted Carmilla at the bar chuckling with a beautiful brunette, her hand gliding lightly along her arm. 

It was agonizing to watch, it felt like a punch in the stomach. It made Laura want to curl into a ball and sob. She couldn’t look, she finished the rest of her wine quickly.

 So this was how it was going to be from now on? Well... She knew it would happen, Carmilla didn’t need her anymore so she dropped her. She was free again to do whatever, _whoever_ she wanted. But god, if it wasn’t killing Laura to watch it play out now. How did she ever think she'd be able to handle this?

“There’s Carm,” LaF said, smiling and waving in her direction.

Oh jeez, really. What the hell are they doing? Laura stared down at the table.

“Laura, she’s over there,” LaF said, pointing in that direction.

“I’ve seen her, thanks LaF,” Laura nodded, feeling her face flush.

She needed to stop this, she needed to move on, it was over it was… all over and her friends had been right, this had all just been one massive mistake, she should never have agreed to any of this in the first place. 

“Excuse me, I have to make a phone call,” Laura said grabbing her coat and heading toward the exit, past Carmilla without giving her a glance.

Laura pulled out her phone as she reached the sidewalk outside and hit call, catching sight of the bracelet glinting on her arm that Carmilla had given her, she’d have to take it off… give it back.

“Hello?”

 “Hi Mackenzie? It’s Laura Hollis,” she pulled her lower lip between her teeth. 

“Hi, Laura Hollis,” It was obvious that Mackenzie was smiling as she spoke. 

“So… I was hoping we could maybe meet for a drink, tomorrow… maybe?” Laura said, running a hand through her hair.

“Sure, absolutely, I’d like that. Where?”

“Let’s just say McGee’s around 8? We both know where that is,” she said, trying to sound happy and confident.

“I’ll be there, Laura Hollis, can’t wait.”

“Great. I guess I’ll see you then.”

She turned to head back into the bar, pausing as she took a step. Did she want to go back in there and watch Carmilla flirt and leave with some random woman tonight?

She shook her head, turned on her heel and walked off down the street toward her apartment.

*

 “Were you okay the other night you seemed a little off? I was worried,” Mackenzie asked, Laura had decided to sit across the bar from their usual booth, this was a date after all, they sat near the juke box instead. She could feel Perry and LaF’s eyes on her from across the room.

“Me? I was just tired long work week you know, I don’t sleep too well sometimes,” Laura smiled at her, taking a sip of her drink.

“I feel you there,” Mackenzie laughed. “I don’t mind so much right now though, it kinda led me to you actually.”

Laura blushed, this girl was so sweet but also looked like a total badass… kinda like Carmilla.

“So, what do you do Mackenzie?”

“I’m a social media manager for a publication company,” she responded. 

“That sounds like... fun,” Laura nodded.

“I mean it’s no news anchor but I enjoy it...” Laura spotted Carmilla walk into the bar, it was like she sensed she was there, her attention immediately drawn to her. She sat at the bar, striking up a conversation with a red head.

“Laura? Hello?”

“Sorry,” Laura shook herself, “I’m sorry, I just thought I saw someone I knew. Your tattoos, tell me about them,” she said, downing her beer.

“Sure, wow, umm… I actually got my first tattoo when I was fifteen, I know it’s not…” Laura watched Carmilla take a shot.

“Then I got this one, there a funny story, I was in Dublin, me and my friend and well… best friend at the time anyway, decided to both get matching tattoos so…”

Carmilla was speaking to LaFontaine, she looked annoyed, she raked a hand roughly through her perfectly quaffed hair. 

"And then this one, I’m just a big Harry Potter fan,” Mackenzie beamed. 

“Oh, me too!” Laura smiled, contributing something after having missed most of what her date had just said and trying her hardest not to look over at Carmilla.

 “Do you have any tattoos?” Mackenzie asked, finishing her beer.

“Me, no,” Laura shook her head, “I never really…” she stared at Carmilla as she took another shot, she turned, looking directly at her.

Laura couldn’t look away once they made eye contact, her stomach clenched, she felt her heart rate pick up. Carmilla didn’t smile or look particularly happy at all, she stared back at Laura for a moment and then her eyes landed on Mackenzie before she turned away, signaling to the bartender.

“Can I get you another drink?”

“Sorry? Oh, yes please, thank you,” Laura smiled, blushing a little.

“Cool,” Mackenzie stood, heading toward the bar, Laura watched, Carmilla noticed her, looking her up and down as sipped her drink, she didn’t move to speak to her, she turned instead to converse with the redhead again… 

It had been 30 minutes since Laura had last looked over in Carmilla’s direction and she felt that was quite an achievement, especially since it was getting harder and harder for her not to look. “And then I spent 6 months in South America with my friend Al, and we did so many _amazing_ things there, have you ever been to Chile?”

“No,” Laura responded quickly, “I haven’t really traveled too much to be honest, I’d love to, I just haven’t had the chance yet.”

“You have to go Chile one day…” Okay she would just quickly glance over just to satisfy her curiosity and then she wouldn't need to look over again.

She immediately regretted it, Carmilla was looking cozy with the red head, oh god. This was agony.

What was Carmilla even doing? She never went for redheads, like ever.

“Excuse me, just gotta go use the restroom,” She stood, not daring to look in Carmilla’s direction as she headed to the bathroom.

She leaned back against the bathroom door, this had been the worst idea, why did she think going on a date would make things better? Why did she decide on this bar of all places for said date? Of course Carmilla would be here.

She took a few calming breathes, it was all going to be okay… it had been fine so far, she just needed to be a better date. She would go back out there and be really attentive and interested and she wouldn’t even think about Carmilla anymore… she could do that.

She was drying her hands when the bathroom door opened, Laura glanced up suddenly frozen to the spot as Carmilla stared at her looking rather mad. Laura internally chastised herself that her immediate thoughts were that angry Carmilla was incredibly sexy and she’d love to kiss that frown right off her face.

“What are you doing?” She asked, raising a perfect eyebrow.

Laura frowned at her, was she definitely… yep, definitely speaking her, there was no one else in here.

“Sorry?” Laura asked unsure what was going on.

“So, are you _dating_ her now?” Carmilla said angrily. 

Carm, I – what? What is your problem? Are you drunk?”

“I don’t like her,” Carmilla said, taking another step into the room towards her.

“Well that won’t be a problem because you’re not the one dating her… and  _dating?_ _Really?_ This is literally our first date, Carmilla,” Laura responded, feeling a little ticked off herself now.

“Why are you- What are you doing? Are you trying to-” Carmilla paused, shaking her head, taking some shaky breaths.

“What do you mean, _what am I doing?_ What are _you_ doing? Why are you even _in here_ right now? Shouldn’t you be out there, finding your next-”

Suddenly Carmilla was kissing her, her hands gripping the sides of Laura’s face. She could taste the alcohol on Carmilla’s tongue, and she couldn’t stop herself from moaning as Carmilla pulled lightly at her hair.

“ _Fuck Carmmm_ ,” Laura whined as she was pushed back against the wall, her hands getting lost in Carmilla’s hair. 

“ _Laura_ ,” Carmilla groaned, her thigh pushed between her legs and Laura moaned into the kiss again. 

 The kiss was desperate and harsh and exciting. This should feel wrong but it was so perfect and so right…

When their lips eventually parted, they both sucked in some deep breathes, barely an inch of space between their lips, their eyes immediately meeting.

“You’re drunk,” Laura whispered, she desperately wanted to be kissing Carmilla again.

Carmilla shook her head. “I’m not-” 

“And I’m on a date,” Laura interrupted, detangling her hands from Carmilla’s hair and resting them on her shoulders.

Carmilla frowned at those words, her hands tightening on Laura’s hips.

They were both still breathing heavily and Carmilla’s lips looked so kissable right now.

“Carm, what the hell!” Laura said, coming to her senses and pushing her away as the reality of the situation set in.

“ _What’s wrong with you?_ You break this off and then _this_ … with the hot, sexy kissing and the groping and- and then you’re out there with all of the beautiful women and the flirting and I can’t do it and I can’t do _this_ , I’m on a date... I need you to just… _leave me alone!”_

Oh, of course, here come the tears, Laura thought turning and leaving the bathroom quickly.

“Laura, are you okay?” Mackenzie stood when Laura reached her, jeez, she must look awful, she tried to fix her hair.

“I’m just not feeling great,” Laura said, not daring to look anywhere other than the floor.

“Shit, really?”  Mackenzie asked, obviously worried.

“I’m sorry, I think I need to go,” Laura said, swiping at the tears on her cheeks.

 “Of course, no problem, Laura, let’s get you out of here,” Mackenzie responded, grabbing Laura’s coat and helping her pull it on.

She glanced over her shoulder with the thought that Carmilla might follow them out but she was just stood next to their usual booth and she watched them leave with a blank expression on her face.

*

 “So, how was your date?” LaF asked, accepting the tea that Perry had just made for the three of them as Laura moped around her apartment in pajamas.

She shrugged, “She’s great, really. I just… don’t really think she’s the one for me.” she responded, running a hand through her hair. 

“That’s a real shame, L,” LaF responded, “I see Carmilla’s really getting back into the swing of things, which was kind of unexpected if I’m being honest.” 

Laura’s stomach clenched uncomfortably, she did not want to be talking about Carmilla right now.

“What happened with the two of you?” LaF asked, appearing to be fishing for information.

“Nothing, you know that,” Laura responded automatically, warming her hands with the hot mug.

“ _Laura_ ,” LaF rubbed their eyes with a sigh as if they had given up.

“LaFontaine, it’s not any of our business,” Perry spoke up.

“Look, no matter what my feelings were or… _are_ …” Laura swallowed, “Carmilla was never into me like that and she doesn’t do relationships,” she said with a nod. 

“ _Are you being serious right now?!”_ LaF looked at her like she was mad, “Carmilla is-”

“ _LaFontaine_! This is not something we should be discussing with Laura-”

“Me and Carm and all that fake dating thing, it’s all over, so we can all just forget any of that ever happened, okay?” Laura interrupted, her voice rising as she spoke, sipping her tea, gasping when the hot liquid burnt her tongue.

“Can you forget, Laura?” LaF asked, quietly. 

“I can try…” 

*

 Laura had always loved McGee’s, it felt like their place, it was one of her favorite places in the whole of the city, like a second home. But… It was quickly becoming the one place that Laura despised going.

Carmilla was already there when they arrived that evening, to Laura’s surprise, she joined them in the booth when they took their seats, sitting down next to Laura like all was well in her stupid leather pants. Laura stared down at the brown table, she wasn’t sure why she was so surprised though, if things were going back to some kind of "normalcy" then surely this was it.

“Carmilla, how are you doing?” Perry asked with a welcoming smile.

Carmilla shrugged, “I’ve been better, I’ll admit,” she sipped her whisky, her knee casually brushing against Laura’s under the table, she guessed it wasn’t intentional. 

“Your mother sold her company then?” Perry continued.

Carmilla seemed to tense up a little, Laura looked up just in time to see her give a small nod.

“That’s strange, I’d have thought there would be some kind of announcement, I haven’t or seen or heard anything on the news,” LaF said, nonchalantly.

Carmilla was quiet for a moment, turning her glass around on the table. “Well, it’s not- It’s almost, there’s no official statement released yet but there’s no backing out now."

“I’m going to the bar, anyone want anything?” Laura said, popping up out of her seat.

She wandered over the bar, glad to have at least a moment of time to herself, she could barely manage two minutes in Carmilla's presence.

“Laura,” jeez she’d thought too soon, it was Carmilla.

Laura glanced at her for a second to acknowledge her and then leaned on the bar.

“Look, I’m sorry about the other night, I’d umm… had a lot to drink,” Carmilla raked a hand through her hair, uncomfortably, she reached out as if to place her hand on Laura’s shoulder and then pulled back, “I–  I– Could we maybe… go somewhere to talk about-"

“Carm, don’t worry yourself, I’ve already forgotten about it,” she lied, honestly it had been the only thing on Laura’s mind for past two days.

Carmilla nodded, frowning down at the bar where her hand rested, “That’s good, that’s… okay,” she turned heading back to their booth. Laura took a few deep breaths, trying to get a hold of herself, she would not cry right now. 

When Laura returned to the booth with the drinks, the hushed conversation at the table turned silent and Laura glanced nervously around at her friends, “What ya talking about guys?”

LaF stared at Carmilla as if waiting for her to respond and there was a moment of awkward silence before Perry spoke up first, “We were just talking about LaF’s birthday which is coming up very soon,” Laura wasn’t sure she was being quite truthful.

“Yes, we were thinking about a surprise party,” LaF said, still giving Carmilla odd looks from across the table.

“It’s not a surprise if you plan your own party,” Laura smiled at them.

“Excuse me,” Carmilla said, standing abruptly from the booth and headed toward the bar.

“What’s her problem?” Laura said, trying to seem disaffected.

“She’s being… stubborn,” LaF said, shaking their head.

“What does that mean?” Laura asked, glancing in Carmilla’s direction and immediately regretting as she watched her smiling at a cute blonde.

“She’ll come to her senses,” Perry said, sipping from her glass. “So, LaFontaine your birthday, how _will_ we celebrate?” she said, effectively changing the subject.

Laura tapped the table impatiently, as LaFontaine spoke, she wouldn’t do it, she wouldn’t look at Carmilla, every time she did she wanted to sob. She forced a laugh at LaFontaine’s little quip, she complimented Perry on her new scarf. She wasn’t going to look, she wasn’t going to look, she wasn’t going to - Oh god, she was looking… Carmilla was conversing with another woman, she was smirking, touching her thigh with her fingertips as she sat on a bar stool.

Laura swallowed, she contemplated disappearing into the bathroom, she was slowly losing her mind, she could hardly take this anymore.

And yet she was still staring… Even though all of this was happening right in front of her, she still couldn’t help but notice how sexy Carmilla looked in her leather pants and how her hair fell just perfectly and how kissable her jawline was, remembering what it was like suck kisses down her throat and her hands, her flawless hands… Carmilla was staring back at her and Laura couldn’t look away, her dark eyes, entrapping her, entrancing her. She sucked in a few fast breaths. Carmilla was staring at her intently as if she was the most interesting thing she’d ever seen. A serious expression but then her eyebrows seemed to draw together and her mouth turned down into a cute little sulky expression and Laura had the sudden urge to tear across the bar and hold her tightly.

“ _Laura?!”_

“Huh _? What?!”_ Laura almost fell out of her seat as she was drawn back into the conversation at the table.

“Laura, honey, are you okay? You’re crying,” Perry said, reaching across the booth to her hand.

“I-” She was shaking and she realized, yes, she was indeed crying, oh god, could this get any more embarrassing? She had to leave now, this is all too much. How did she think she could ever just go back to way things were? This was killing her…

 “I can’t do this, I can’t _sit here_ and pretend that everything’s not- _I’ve gotta go_ ,” she stood, knocking over her beer as she did. _Fantastic, make a scene, Laura._ She practically fell out of the booth moving quickly past Carmilla, not daring to look at her and across the bar to the exit.

She couldn’t hold back an unpleasant sob as she made it to the street, she wiped the tears quickly from her eyes as she tried to see where she was walking.

“Laura,” this was not happening, just keep walking.

“Laura, _wait!”_ Carmilla yelled, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

Yay, Carmilla's going to see her ugly crying, the perfect ending to this evening.

Laura wiped her cheeks with the sleeves of her sweatshirt as she turned. She couldn’t even think of anything to say so she didn't.

“Laura…” Carmilla’s breath rushed out of her, her expression was completely devastated. “You’re- Why are you- _come here_ ,” she grabbed her, pulling Laura into a tight hug, squeezing her, her hand grasping the back of Laura’s head.

Laura sucked in a shaky breath, sulking completely against Carmilla as she continued to cry but feeling like she could suddenly breathe again. She shivered in Carmilla’s embrace, as her hands seemed to get lost in her hair, soothing her.

“Cupcake… please don’t cry.” She whispered into her ear, “It’s breaking my goddamn heart all over again.” She squeezed her tighter.

“Carm,” Laura moaned into her neck, fisting her hands into the front of Carmilla’s jacket.

“Come on,” Carmilla said, pulling back slightly. She didn’t want to let go, the scent of Carmilla, the feel of her arms around her… she needed it like she needed to breath. She’d missed it, she loved it.

She loved her…

“Cupcake,” Carmilla whispered into her ear and Laura shuddered against her.

“Let’s get you inside,” Carmilla said, pulling away.

“I need you,” Laura said suddenly, she wasn’t sure where these words were coming from, “I’m not gonna let go, I can’t- I can’t ever let go.” She met Carmilla’s gaze, grasping her jacket tightly, “ _Please don’t go back in there, please_ ,” she sobbed.

God, she was so weak but she couldn’t stand the thought of Carmilla going back into that bar and taking some random woman home with her tonight.

“I’m here, Cupcake," Carmilla said, dropping a kiss on her head.

Carmilla kept an arm around her as they walked up the street and Laura kept ahold of her jacket and hid her face in her neck in the elevator.

“No,” Laura said as Carmilla tried to step away from her once they’d reached her apartment.

“Laura, I’m here,” Carmilla said, placing a finger under her chin. 

Laura nodded, before opening the door.

She removed her coat, Carmilla did the same and Laura pulled Carmilla over to the couch, kicking off her shoes and Carmilla chuckled a little as she did the same.

She lay back on the couch, pulling Carmilla on top of her and holding her tightly.

“Stay,” Laura whispered.

 “I’m not going anywhere,” Carmilla mumbled into her neck.


	13. This Love Was Meant to Be

Laura smiled sleepily, Carmilla’s weight on top of her such a pleasant feeling even if it appeared they had been sleeping on the couch. It must still be early, she mused as she stroked the bare skin on Carmilla’s side where her shirt had ridden up, the sun wasn’t up yet, at least she didn’t have to go to work. Why were they on the couch anyway?

  _Oh no..._

“ _You stayed_ ,” Laura squeaked, tensing up suddenly, eyes wide.

Carmilla sucked in a breath and made a _hmm_ noise against her throat, “Of course I stayed, you asked me too,” she mumbled huskily.

“Carm… I’m sorry I should never have asked you too, I know after everything and-”

Carmilla’s hand covered her mouth, “Stop talking.”

Laura fell silent and Carmilla dropped her hand, her face still hiding in Laura’s neck as she tried to sleep on.

“It’s just…I never should have asked you come up here and then I made you stay and obviously you have-” Laura started, her hands now absentmindedly rubbing along the outsides of Carmilla leather covered thighs.

"Stop, just stop talking," Carmilla said, raising her upper body slowly off of her and looking down at Laura looking a little annoyed. "Do you want me to leave?"

Laura frowned and then shook her head slowly as they stared at each other.

"Good," Carmilla smiled, dropping back into her original position against Laura's chest.

 _Good?_ What did that mean? 

Laura chewed her lip in an effort to not talk, she was just going to be quiet and enjoy this moment and... “ _Carm... I can’t do this anymore!”_  

_Oh shit_

Carmilla lifted herself again, looking down at Laura warily with an eyebrow raised.

 “I can’t pretend anymore,” Laura sighed, willing herself not to cry.

Carmilla frowned at her, looking irritated, “Laura, it’s over remember, you don’t have to pretend anymore.”

“ _No, no_ , it’s not that. I can’t pretend I don’t want you, Carmilla. I can’t pretend the only thing I see when you’re in the room is _you_ , you and your stupid leather pants!” She said, slapping lightly at the back of Carmilla’s thighs, making her suck in a breath. 

“I can’t pretend it doesn’t kill me to watch you flirting with other women down at the bar, seeing their hands on you when it should be _my hands,”_ She ran her hands up to Carmilla’s waist.

“I can’t pretend I don’t want you, I can’t pretend I don’t l- _I can’t do any of it anymore_! So if that means I have to-”

Her rant came to an end as Carmilla’s lips covered hers in a heated but beautiful, perfect kiss and Laura moaned, her hands slipping into Carmilla’s hair as their tongues met.

“Laura,” Carmilla said as she pulled away, “I’m sorry, I thought you- you were just were so-” Carmilla didn’t finish what she was saying, she kissed Laura again, the kiss only ending when Carmilla started to smile.

“I hope you’re not just kissing me to shut me up,” Laura said breathlessly. 

“Well…” Carmilla smirked, raising an eyebrow, chuckling when Laura smacked at the back of her thigh again. 

“Your leather pants are ridiculous,” Laura said, blurting out the first mildly offensive thing that came to mind.

Carmilla huffed a laugh at Laura’s somewhat bizarre statement/comeback, “Cupcake, I know for a fact that you love my leather pants, you barely manage to keep your hands off them.” She rocked her hips forward a little causing Laura to take a sharp intake of breath and quickly pull her wandering hands away from Carmilla’s behind as she blushed.

“Laura Hollis,” Carmilla said, confidently as if she was about to say something profound, she lifted her upper body up once again, “I am in love you, I’ve been in love with you for… an _embarrassing_ amount of time at this point,” she admitted, with a frown of discomfort.  Laura’s mouth dropped open, she was frozen, she couldn’t believe what she was hearing, was this a dream?

“I tried to not be, I honestly tried to _not_ want you but… my feelings only got stronger and then you agreed to be me phony girlfriend and then things just got so, _so_ much worse and I tried to hold back but then we kissed and then we slept together and I knew there was pretty much no turning back for me but you wanted something different and I thought maybe I would be okay with it. But I didn’t think you, I mean you always acted so disaffected and you told Perry that it would _never_ happen and I couldn’t hear those words. That was devastating, it broke my heart, Laura. I knew…” Carmilla sucked in a shaky breath, “I knew I needed to end it because in all honesty it was _crushing_ me.” 

Laura felt tears tickle down her face, “ _Carm_ , jeez, why didn’t you say _something_?!”

She pulled Carmilla down for a kiss. “Why didn’t you say something before?” She repeated.

“Stop crying,” Carmilla smiled, bringing a hand up to wipe at Laura’s tears, “Before all this, you never seemed interested in me and then when we started sleeping together I was worried about messing everything up. Why didn’t _you_ say something, Cutie?”

“I love you, Carm. I’m saying it now, I love you, I love you,” she pulled her down for another kiss, “I love you, I love you,” she mumbled into the kiss. 

Carmilla chuckled, “ _Shh,”_ kissing her again.

 “I’m so sorry, Carm, for everything, for all those things I said to Perry. I was just saying things I thought you’d _want_ to hear. Oh god, I've been a fool.”

Carmilla shook her head, planting another kiss on Laura’s lips, “I think we’ve both been a little foolish, Cupcake. But none of that matters now, okay?”

“I love you,” Laura repeated, she never wanted to stop saying it.

They kissed again and Laura sighed, stretching a little, "Bed?"

Carmilla nodded, moving to stand and helped pull Laura to her feet.

She giggled, “Carm, your mom… does she think we broke up?” Laura said as they walked around the couch toward her bedroom.

“She does,” Carmilla nodded, “She’s a little distraught,” she smiled. 

“Your poor mother,” Laura grimaced.

“Can we stop talking about my mom please,” Carmilla said, kissing her as they reached the doorway.

*

 Laura wandered into the bar, pulling off her scarf, practically skipping with happiness.

 Carmilla who was at the bar grabbed her arm as she past, swiveling her around to face her.

“Hey Cupcake,” she smiled, pulling her in for a kiss.

Laura relaxed into the kiss, trying to follow Carmilla’s lips as she pulled away.

“That was… very nice,” Laura blushed, this all still felt very new.

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” Carmilla asked, holding her close, her hands on her waist. 

“Carm, I got the promotion! I just found out!” She beamed.

 “No way!” 

“I did it, Carm, I did it!” she laughed, pulling Carmilla in for another kiss. “Come on we gotta tell the others!”

Carmilla wrapped an arm around Laura’s waist as they turned to be met with the wide eyes of LaF, Perry, Danny and Kirsch…

 “Wait a sec, were you two… are you two…” LaF said, rising from their seat and looking at them questionably. “Did you two finally…”

They nodded in unison and Carmilla dropped a kiss on Laura’s brow.

“Thank fuck for that!” LaF yelled, punching the air.

Perry started to clap, rising from her seat to pull the two of them into a hug, “I’m so happy for you guys! You were both trying so hard to mess everything up but I knew you’d work it out!”

Kirsch’s booming laugh echoed around the bar, he tapped Laura on the back. 

“Guys, wait… there’s more good news… _I got promoted today!”_ Laura beamed with happiness. 

Perry gasped.

“ _What?!”_ LaF chuckled.

“You’re looking at the new midafternoon anchor!” Laura said, pointing at herself.

“Laura that’s _amazing_ ,” Perry beamed.

“Nice one, Hollis,” Danny gave her arm an affectionate squeeze and a smile.

Carmilla wrapped her arms around Laura’s waist from behind. 

“We need to celebrate! Champagne!” LaF yelled, moving off toward the bar quickly.

“Sit! Sit down!” Perry said, urging them both into the booth.

“Champagne!” LaF yelled again, wandering back to the booth, with a bottle and 6 flutes.

Laura grimaced and Carmilla chuckled beside her, conscious of Laura’s distaste for champagne.

She blushed and Carmilla pulled her in for a kiss.

“Eww, guys I’ve changed my mind about you two, please stop with the kissing,” LaF said, trying to pop the champagne, giving up and handing it to Kirsch. 

“LaF, you told me to stay away from Carmilla, you said all of this was a bad idea, what changed your mind?” Laura asked with a smile.

“I did, but that was before Carmilla came to my apartment crying about how in love with you she was and _promised me_ she wouldn’t break your heart so… I told her to go for it,” LaF said, taking their seat in the booth.

“What?” Laura said, looking between Carmilla and LaF. 

Carmilla looked a smidge embarrassed, “I didn’t cry.” 

“She did,” LaF responded quickly with a smile.

Kirsch started pouring champagne into the glasses.

“So, if LaF told you to go for it then… why didn’t you!?” Laura asked, looking sideways at Carmilla.

“Because… you kept saying we were _just friends_ … friends with a _few_ benefits…” Carmilla smiled and LaF gasped loudly. “And I thought maybe that could make me happy and then you told Perry, when I was hiding in your bedroom, you told Perry that it was never going to happen and I realised I'd always want _more_ with you so I just gave up,” Carmilla shrugged, grabbing Laura’s hand.

“I’m sorry, Carm,” she planted a kiss on her cheek. "I wish I'd known-"

“Wait a moment, that morning when you said you talking to _Carmen from work_ ,” Perry said, looking between two of them in shock.

They both laughed, “I’m sorry, that was Carm. I was at Carm’s place, I had to lie, I’m so sorry, Perry,” Laura giggled.

“Wow…I mean I should have known really,” she shook her head frowning at her glass of champagne.

 “Hang on, haven’t you just spent the last week or so sleeping with random women you’ve picked up in this bar? Is everyone forgetting that?” Danny said, raising an eyebrow at Carmilla. 

Everyone fell silent.

Carmilla’s hand tightened in Laura’s.

“Danny,” Laura began.

“Not that it’s any of  _your_ business, _no_ ,” Carmilla glared at Danny, “I didn’t sleep with anyone… I couldn’t do it anymore, I didn’t want to,” she said honestly, turning from frowning at Danny to smiling at Laura.

“Not that it would have mattered,” Laura said, “We’re together now.” 

“Right” Danny nodded, “Excuse me,” she stood, heading for the bathroom. 

“You know, I never thought you’d end up with Karnstein, I always thought you’d get back with Danny in the end,” LaF said, with a thoughtful nod.

 How much of that champagne had they had to drink? 

Carmilla looked a little mad and Laura tried not to laugh at her. “Carm, can I borrow you for a minute?” she said, kissing the back of Carmilla’s hand and then released it as she stepped out of the booth and wandered over to the bar.

“Danny and me? It’s never going to happen, okay? Never. Don’t listen to LaF and don’t get so worked up by Danny,” Laura said, grabbing both of Carmilla’s hands in hers.

Carmilla nodded, “I’m sorry Cupcake, it’s just that I just finally got you and I never want to even have to think about losing you, _especially to Xena_ ,” she leaned in, giving Laura a chaste kiss.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Laura smiled, using Carmilla’s own words.

“Are you two official now?” They both turned toward the bar, Mike the bartender was smiling at them. “Took you long enough,” he added.

Laura smiled, “Mike, was it… was it that obvious?” 

“Are you kidding me? I’ve been rooting for you guys since Christmas,” he smiled, “Let me buy you a drink, what can I get you?”

“Thanks, just a couple of beers please,” Laura grinned.

 As they moved back toward the booth the song in the bar changed and they both stopped in their tracks and turned. Mike was reentering the bar from the back and winked at them as _Hungry Eyes_ began to play.

 “Wow, I never thought he'd remember that,” Laura laughed, blushing.

 Carmilla chuckled, “Looks like you’ll have to dance with me, Cupcake,” she said, taking Laura’s bottle from her hand and placing them both on their table.

 Laura chewed her lower lip as Carmilla pulled her close, everything in this moment was perfect, her life felt like it was slowly falling into place. Four months ago, Laura could never have imagined her life changing so much, feeling so happy.

 She rested her head on Carmilla’s shoulder as they danced just a little too slowly for the beat of the song but neither of them cared.

 “I love you, Laura,” Carmilla whispered close to her.

 “I love you, Carm,” Laura lifted her head with a smile, leaning in for a kiss.

 “Before I forget, we’re having dinner with my mother on Sunday,” Carmilla said, grabbing Laura’s hand and unexpectedly spinning her around.

 “Oh,” Laura said as she returned to Carmilla’s arms, “You mother? What have I gotten myself into here?” she joked.

Carmilla smiled, “Let’s just try and keep her off the subject of wedding plans.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your support while i've been writing this fic, all the comments and kudos are appreciated and help keep me motivated. 
> 
> I'll be writing (have mostly written) a short epilogue to round things off but this fic is at it's end! 
> 
> I have a few other ideas and a few sequel ideas for other fics which i'm hoping get to, so i'll be sticking around. 
> 
> I have tumblr, though i'm not very good at using it, you can find me here- juststandard.tumblr - talk to me, i have few friends!
> 
> Sarah :)


	14. Epilogue

“Laura, I’ll say it again, it’s not going to be a problem,” Carmilla said, slowing down at a stop light and giving Laura a reassuring smile.

“It _is_ a problem because in case you’ve forgotten now that’s Perry’s officially moving in with LaF, I can’t afford to live in that apartment on my own, even if I ask for a pay rise,” Laura responded, staring at Carmilla as she drove.

 She moved off, glancing briefly at Laura, “Just move in with me,” she said casually, turning right.

“What?” Laura said, completely taken aback.

“Move in with me,” Carmilla shrugged with a smile, placing her hand on Laura’s knee.

“Carm… shouldn’t we talk about this?” Laura asked, placing her hand on top of Carmilla’s. 

“Laura, what is there to talk about? You practically live with me anyway, we barely spend a night apart, what difference will it make?” Carmilla said, watching the road in front of her. 

“But- but the apartment, the bar-” Laura said, this was all a little sudden.

“We can still go to the bar even if you don’t live 10 ft away,” Carmilla smiled at her.

“Do you actually _want_ us to move in together? Or is this just sort of a last resort,” Laura asked, pulling her lower lip between her teeth.

Carmilla just smiled at her “Of course I want you to move in, I love you, Laura” she said, giving her thigh a squeeze.

 “Okay, so… we’re moving in together…” Laura said, trying to absorb what she was saying. “We’re moving in together, _living together,_ this is a big step,” she took a deep breath.

“My mother will be pleased,” Carmilla said, glancing briefly in her rear view. “She’s only mentioned it _every time_ I’ve seen her for the past three months.”

“Oh, _please_ let me be there when you tell her, I love making Lilita happy,” Laura laughed.

"Don't forget, we still need to think of a reason to get out of that couples photoshoot she has planned for next week," Carmilla grimaced.

"I don't know Carm... I'm kind of intrigued," Laura said thoughtfully.

"I beg you, don't make me do it," Carmilla replied, shaking her head.

Laura just smiled, removing her phone from her jeans as it buzzed in her pocket.

“ _Aww_ , sweet,” Laura murmured as she stared at her phone.

“What is it?” Carmilla asked, glancing between Laura and the road. 

“Danny,” Laura smiled and Carmilla frowned in confusion. “She said thank you for setting her up with Mack, they had an amazing date and they are seeing each other again on Saturday. I knew they’d make a good couple.”

“Does this mean Mackenzie will be initiated as an official member of the group?” Carmilla frowned, turning left.

 “Initiated?” Laura giggled. 

“Yeah, you gave me a key to your apartment, remember? She is not having a key to my or should I say _our_ apartment that’s for sure,” Carmilla smiled, glancing at her with a shake of her head.

“Fine no key but I would think so, you'll have to get used to her, Carm,” Laura shrugged.

"I'm more concerned about losing our seats in the booth, we might have to... dare I say it? ... Sit in a bigger booth?" Carmilla said solemnly.

Laura gasped, _"A different booth?!"_ She started to giggle, "I'm not sure I can." 

"Then we'll have to kick LaF and Perry out," Carmilla said with a confident nod.

"Hey! They're the heart and soul of the group," Laura said, frowning.

"Danny it is, I don't mind delivering the bad news," she smirked, connivingly.

“Not happening, Carm. Where are we going? We've been driving for hours." Laura moaned, glancing out of her passenger side window. 

“It's been 30 minutes and I'm still not going to tell you. Wait and see… Cupcake, it’s a _surprise_.”

“Are we almost there then?” Laura asked, relaxing now she no longer had a head full of apartment worries.

“We’re almost there,” Carmilla nodded calmly.

"Could you give me a clue?" She asked, bringing the back of Carmilla's hand to her lips.

"We'll be there in two minutes," she replied.

 Laura sucked in a breath when they arrived at their destination, she felt her heart swell.

“Oh, Carm,” she whispered, trying to hold back sudden unexpected tears.

“I know it’s been a while but I had to wait until it came to town but I wanted to take you on our official first date,” Carmilla said, pulling the car over.

“A carnival…  Carm, you remembered,” Laura smiled.

“I told you I’d take you to a carnival, Cupcake so here we are. What’s wrong?” Carmilla asked with concern as Laura tried not to cry.

“Carm, I’m _so_ in love you,” she said and Carmilla leaned over and kissed her brow. 

“I love you more,” Carmilla responded, wiping a tear away from Laura’s cheek and pulling her in for a kiss before she could argue.

“Come on, Cupcake, we gotta ride that ferris wheel until the sun goes down,” Carmilla said, opening the car door and jumping out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it! Thanks for taking the time to read. As always, kudos and comments are appreciated. Love you all! 
> 
> So I kinda wrote a chapter of a sequel to This Magic Works a while ago and I have it mostly planned out where I'd take it if i continue. I'm just not the biggest fan of sequels so I've sort of held back writing it. But I'll work on it.
> 
> Find me on tumblr - juststandard.tumblr


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